Pale Memories
by Crystal heart of ruby love
Summary: A trained assassin. No memories of his past, a new identity, moving in the shadows. He meets a girl from his past. An angel in the darkness. Who is he and how is her past intertwined with his? Chapter 54: Athrun and Cagalli discover the warehouse but Lacus and Kira are gone. Where would Kira take Lacus?
1. Prologue:

**Author's note: Hey hey! Finally back from an extremely long hiatus. With a bit of something new. Never tried writing a story like that before. A bit of crime, a bit of suspense, a bit of romance (maybe) and a lot of angsty (as usual!) Please read on and don't forget to review! **

**Prologue:**

It was pure darkness below him.

He gazed into the pitch black, the seemingly endless dark pit of swirling shadows. The whooping of the spinning rotor blades above beat out a constant rhythm that echoed deep inside him like the deafening chime of a large church bell. The night wind whipped at his hair and clothes and made his dark eyes water. It hit him with fierce vengeance, pricking his bare skin with ice-cold needles and threatening to knock him overboard.

His white fingers curled tight around the metal doorframe. Adrenalin pumped rapidly through his body, tension coiled in his thighs, his breathing quickened. He was ready.

"Go." The soft voice behind him said. A single word. He launched himself over the ledge of the helicopter and fell into a dark void of emptiness...


	2. 1

**Chapter 1: Shadows**

They exited the French diner and trotted out onto the main street. The main street was lined on both sides by evening diners. People flowed in and out of the restaurants. Couples, business associates, colleagues. An evening crowd out to seek some classy food and entertainment.

They wove their way through the crowd and underneath the glow of a lamp post, they exchanged their farewells and parted ways with warm laughter and hearty claps to the back. They separated and streamed down both sides of the main street, leaving behind a single couple bathed in the light of the lamp post. The couple watched their companions disappear into the evening crowd and exchanged a glance before turning to walk down the street.

The woman was closer to the row of cafeterias and the light from the windows lit up her face. She was a young woman with friendly grey eyes and delicate features. Her pink hair was drawn back into a high ponytail which cascaded down her back and ended in gentle curls. She walked with a graceful air, her head tilted towards the dark night sky as she inhaled the cool night breeze. The man was on her right, walking close, his sleeve brushing lightly against her bare arm. He was tall and lean, his eyes a bright, sparkling emerald and his hair a navy blue. The collar of his leather jacket was turned up and he was sauntering with his hands in his pockets. He had to slow down to keep pace with her.

They turned a right at the end of the main street. Automobiles sat still and silent along the road shoulder, bathed a shimmering orangey under the street lamps. They stopped alongside a black convertible.

"You don't have to send me home, Athrun," The woman turned to her companion and smiled. "I'll just grab a cab."

Her companion merely smiled and put a hand into his right jacket pocket. He drew out a clinking bunch of keys. "I'll drive you home. It's my responsibility to see you home safe." His boyish features lit up in a grin. He unlocked the car door, swung it open and swept a bow, gesturing at the passenger seat, his green eyes twinkling with amusement. "After you, Miss Clyne."

She laughed and slid into the passenger seat. Athrun closed the door behind her, walked around the car and got into the driver's seat. He started up the automobile and steered out of the parking lot. The convertible began its cruise down the dark street.

* * *

He did a quick forward roll to break his fall and landed on his feet, crouched low to the ground, his right knee and his left hand pressed against the hard concrete to brace himself. Dark eyes made vigilante surveillance of the area.

Empty. Silent. Dark.

Perfect.

Then like bats, two dark shapes fell one after another, descending from the black inky sky. Rolled forward one after the other and came to a halt on either side of him. He glanced both sides, met the two pairs of glistening eyes that stared intently back at him.

He returned his gaze forward and located the black ominous shadow of the metal air vent protruding from the otherwise flat plain they were on. He straightened and stood with the stealth and agility of a panther. His companions gathered around him, their eyes wary and cautious yet burning with an adamant respect and deference towards him. They were a total of three figures clad in impenetrable black – black knit-tops, black chinos and black skullcaps.

He took a step forward and advanced towards the air vent, his black sneakers silent on the concrete floor.

The metal air vent was a narrow metal cylindrical shape jutting out from the concrete. He slipped slender fingers through the gaps of the metal grate covering the metal cylinder. Even through his gloves, he could feel the icy-coldness of the steel. He closed experienced hands around the bars and heaved it upwards almost effortlessly. It made no sound when he lifted it free. He handed the grid to someone who took it without a word and gazed down into the dark, black, empty well.

He exchanged a glance with the companion on his right and nodded. It was a woman who covered a hand to her right ear and began to speak. "S reporting. We've located the entrance to the building. No way to tell how far. We're going in on K's signal. Over. " She paused, waited for the person on the other end to respond and nodded an affirmative.

Galvanized into action, he placed both hands on the steel edge of the cylinder drum and lifted himself, swinging both legs over the edge so that he was sitting on its rim, his legs dangling in the dark void. Just like crouching at the cabin door of a hovering helicopter, staring down at the empty darkness below your feet.

The air vent was narrow, but there was just sufficient room for him. So he wrapped his arms around him, hugging his body. Calmed himself. Let the adrenalin and whatever chemicals surge through his body.

One.

Two.

Three.

And he pushed himself off, letting himself fall.


	3. 2

**Chapter 2: Trouble**

They were cruising down the highway, the top of the convertible down and the night wind rustling through their hair, when Athrun's phone rang. He reached for his earpiece in his glove compartment and fitted it into his ear, all the while staring straight ahead at the road. "Zala." He said curtly.

"I'm so sorry to call at this hour, Sir. We've got an emergency at the Clyne Corporation. We've already made a call to the police but if you could just make an appearance-"

"Three minutes." Athrun interrupted before hanging up.

"What's wrong?" His companion asked. He tossed a glance in her direction. There was an anxious, worried glance on Lacus' face. No way to hide it from her. "We've got trouble down at the corporation," He replied quickly. He jammed down hard on his brakes and there was a screech as the convertible came to a sudden, jolting halt. Several cars skidded to a stop behind them, horns blared and a livid driver yelled at them and made a rude hand gesture.

Athrun seemed unfazed. "Sit tight," He instructed Lacus as he spun the wheel furiously. The black automobile made a wild swerve and K-turned before plunging into the traffic flowing in the opposite direction, tearing down the road at an alarming seventy miles per hour.

* * *

Shots rang out.

He ran as fast as he could, his thighs burning. Behind him, he heard yelling as guards rushed towards them from all directions. Beside him, his companions were keeping pace, their breathing harsh and ragged through his earpiece.

He wasn't sure how or when it had all started going wrong. They had gone through the air vent according to plan, made it stealthily through the dark corridors and arrived at the target. But before they could even hack into the system and unlock the doors, the overhead lights had come on ablaze. He had still been blinded by the overwhelming light when he heard the shout "freeze". Then, instincts had kicked in and he had ran. _Trap!_ The thought sped through his mind with each plodding step.

As they rounded the corner, he skidded to a halt and pushed his back against the wall. He spun around and gave a triple tap with his pistol, aiming high. The bullets hit the lights with an explosion of sparks. Wires, cables, glass and concrete rained down on the fast approaching pursuers. Quickly, he hastened after his companions would had ran on ahead.

"Where is Dexter's location?" He shot the question as he drew up alongside them. His lungs were burning and he was panting hard.

"Dex, where are you?" His female companion pressed her fingers down hard on her earpiece. Static exploded on the other end, interrupting the message that came through. "Dex, where are you?" She repeated anxiously, "We need you at Sector 101 in two minutes. Dex, do you copy? Dex, where are you?" It was useless. White noise disrupted the communication badly and the broken voice that came through said, "…can't… gunmen…can't get close…abort…Sector 103…go…"

"Sector 103!" She yelled back.

"Roger that!" Her teammates cried. Through their earpieces came a different voice. "Sector 103. I'll see you there."

They rounded another bend and tore down the stairs. Behind them, they could hear pounding footsteps. _Damn! They had gotten through quick! _"Locate the fastest route to Sector 103 now," He instructed his male companion, "We'll cover you."

His male companion pulled from his bag an electronic device even as they kept running. Coordinates and numbers raced across the screen. "This way!" He snapped, suddenly putting on a burst of speed as he made a sudden right turn and sped down the corridor. His teammates were hot on his heels. They flew down two flights of stairs and made several turns, narrowly avoiding a group of guards that poured into the corridor they were running through.

Then there it was. The exit.

He raced towards it, two imposing glass doors set between glass walls. His female companion sent two bullets through a glass panel and the glass shattered with a deafening crash. They leapt through the jagged edges of the glass panel unscathed and landed on an empty sidewalk.

"Where is-"

A black sedan skidded to a stop inches before them, wheels screeching wildly. The door of the front passenger seat was flung open. "Get in." He ordered. He backed towards the front passenger seat, firing repeatedly at the exit. His companions clambered in hastily at the back. Black shadows thundered towards them. He aimed at the revolving glass doors and fired 3 bullets in rapid procession. Glass shattered with a deafening explosion.

Then he turned and threw himself into the passenger seat. "Go, go, go!" He cried. The driver stepped hard on the accelerator and the car lurched forward, screaming down the street. The guards piled out onto the street, firing their pistols at the escaping vehicle but the black tinted windows were bullet-proof. They watched the automobile make a rapid turn left and disappear around the corner.

The chief duty officer turned to his subordinates. "Give Mr. Clyne a call," He instructed, pointing at a young guard, "And get Detective Athrun Zala down here _immediately_." The young man ran off and the guards scattered, returning into the building. He remained standing in the middle of the empty dark street, gazing at the road shoulder where the black sedan had vanished.


	4. 3

_Author's note: Ta da! Chapter 3! I think this is my fastest writing speed. Hmm… something new here. Never ventured into writing such stories :D Hope it's an enjoyable read! And it's great to be back!_

**Chapter 3: Lie**

He sank back into his seat and tilted his head back, his eyes closed, trying to catch his breath. There was silence in the car, broken only by the soft hum of the air conditioning and the heavy breathing of his companions. He opened his eyes again and found that sweat was making his hair stick and his eyes water. The black sedan had settled to a slow, comfortable cruise amidst busy night traffic.

"Feeling okay, Kira?" The driver smirked. Kira tossed a glance at him. With one hand on the wheel, he gestured behind him with the other. "Food and water in the back."

Kira nodded and peered over his shoulder to look at his comrades. They were sprawled over the vinyl seats, exhaustion beginning to take its toll on them. "Get the food, Sting." Kira instructed. His male companion turned and pulled out a suitcase from the trunk. There were four bottles of water and packs of sandwiches neatly kept inside. He distributed it to his team mates. Kira nodded quick thanks and settled down with the bottle of water between his knees. He unwrapped the sandwiches. Cold ham. He swallowed it down in three bites and washed it all down with the bottle of water.

Then he placed his finger into his ear and took out his earpiece. Twisted around and dropped it into the suitcase that had contained the food. He hooked a finger underneath the hem of his black skullcap and pulled it off, revealing disheveled brown hair. He leaned back, reached up to his dark eyes and took off coloured contact lenses. Underneath the dark brown film, were bright amethyst eyes. He blinked several times from the discomfort. Those lenses were detestable, but necessary in hiding their identities.

His companions began to take off their headgear and remove their contact lenses as well.

Then his female companion drew out a backpack from under the seat and unzipped it. She produced three sets of garments.

"You guys change first." She said simply, looking out of the window. "Geez Stellar, why can't you change with us?" The driver smirked. Kira gave him a sharp smack on the head. "Enough of your nonsense, Auel. Just drive. Sting, we'll change first."

The pile of garments Kira had received included dark blue jeans, a plain cotton shirt and a black track jacket. He removed his black garments and shrugged them on easily. He balled the black clothes and shoved those along with his boots into the backpack. Sting was dressed in dark khakis and a woolen top. Underneath the skullcap, he had a mop of green hair and matching green eyes.

"Stellar." Kira simply said. Their female companion turned and nodded. "Look away," She ordered. Kira and Sting gazed out of the window obediently, watching the buildings reel past and the cars speeding alongside the black sedan.

There was silence in the automobile followed by a curt "Done". Stellar was stuffing the black clothes into the back pack. A cotton long-sleeved shirt hugged her slim figure and dark blue jeans embraced her long, slender legs.

She glanced up into the rear view mirror so that she could see Auel's eyes. "Don't think I didn't catch you looking at me, you idiot." She snapped.

"Well," he laughed, "you should be glad I'm looking at you. I only look at pretty figures."

"Won't you just cut the crap and drive?" Sting intervened as Stellar made a move to grab Auel.

Kira was silent though. He let the banter in the car slide over him. The fact that the mission had gone awry was displayed visibly, like a punch in the stomach or a slap to the face. He knew the consequences. How screwed-up they were right now, or were going to be. He chewed his bottom lip bitterly. Kira was many things, but what he hated most was backing down, being slapped about, failing.

They were driving over a bridge now and he glanced out of the window at the city splayed out below them. An ocean of twinkling stars. Two am in the middle of a Friday night. In a city that never slept, with its full array of city hot spots, bars, pubs, nightclubs, theatres and cinemas.

But it was all a lie. _H__ell of a fucked-up city_, he thought bitterly.

* * *

The instant Athrun drew up outside the Clyne Corporation and saw the busted glass doors, he knew that the plan had all gone downhill.

The police had already arrived and officers were cordoning off the area with yellow tape. He got out of the car. "Stay here," He told Lacus, who looked as if she was ready to jump out. "Let me figure out what's happening first."

He got past the yellow tape easily, flashing his ID at a young officer who started to protest, then shut his mouth.

"Detective Zala!"

He spun around to see the chief duty officer hustling towards him. "So glad you're here. You were right, they did infiltrate the building. But earlier than we expected. Our preparations were not entirely complete. They got away in a black sedan. We couldn't-"

Athrun put up a hand to stop the tirade. "Just tell me, did they get what they wanted?"

The officer smiled. "No, thankfully, they didn't." Then he lifted a metal suitcase he had been carrying, dialed in a code and opened it. Nestled in the middle of the case was a vial of liquid. "They didn't get it. It's right here."


	5. 4

_Author's note: Finally, much more about Athrun. And oh my god, the things I put Kira through… I think I might be a sadist…_

**Chapter 4: **

"Here."

Athrun received the cup with both hands and took a sip gratefully. He was going to need the caffeine to keep him going if he was to stay awake all night.

Lacus took her seat beside him, both hands cradling her own mug. They were in the dining room of the Clyne Mansion, huddled around the marble table. Siegel Clyne was sitting at the end of the table and he smiled apologetically at Athrun. "So sorry to keep you here, Athrun," He said.

The blue-haired detective merely shook his head. "Don't be, Siegel," he shrugged, "I was fetching Lacus home when I got the call. Doesn't make a difference even if I was sleeping at home. I'll still come down anyway." He paused, and gestured at the metal suitcase resting in the middle of the marble table. "What's important is that they didn't get the target."

"Anyway," he went on, "I should apologize. I didn't know they would break in again so soon." He brought his fist down hard on the table, "I should have got the preparations ready sooner." He downed his coffee in one large, furious gulp.

Lacus frowned. "You mean they've broken in before?"

"Yes, this is the third time those bastards have made an attempt at infiltrating the corporation." Athrun growled. "I swore I would get them this time!" He ran a hand through his disheveled hair.

"Why didn't you tell me this before?" Lacus turned her grey eyes onto Athrun but Siegel Clyne put a gentle hand over hers. "You were studying overseas, Lacus. I didn't want to worry you. I made Athrun promise not to tell you."

Lacus' fingers found the clasp of the metal suitcase and she undid it. The case sprung open to reveal the vial of liquid. "So this is what they're after?" She ran a finger lightly over the glass. "Why do they want it so bad? What's in it, Father?"

Siegel Clyne let out a sigh. "This is a new drug for the company. It's not finished yet, but already, there are people all over the market eyeing it." He paused and raised his eyes, "We can't let it get into the wrong hands because there is so much that could go wrong. Someone could alter the formula and you get another virus, or another antidote or who knows what. The formula is still unstable. More research and alterations need to be made. Until we stabilize it, we can't let it out of our sight."

Silence swept over the room. It was Lacus who broke it first. "Do you know who might be the one trying to get his hands on this?"

"We have a pretty good idea," Athrun said, "Rival companies have implied that they're interested in it. And that includes your all-time rival, Rau Le Creuset whose been suspected of releasing illegal drugs. But until proven, we can't nap him-"

"And that's why this vial can't fall into his hands." Siegel Clyne finished. Then he sighed and ran a hand over his face tiredly. "But I sense, this is merely the start of our problems. We've got a lot more trouble coming our way."

* * *

A single slap reverberated through the entire room. The distinct rapport of skin connecting with skin.

Kira barely flinched even as the barrel of a Glock 17L stared him in the face. A trickle of blood slipped down the side of his chin from the backhanded blow he had received across his cheek. The face behind the pistol was flushed crimson from fury and the shaking fingers clutching the pistol deactivated the safety lever. The barrel of the Glock was jammed against his brow, digging hard into his skull.

"17 bullets," The man spat, "I don't think there's a big chance of me missing you, Kira." The man was of average build, the blonde hair that cascaded down his shoulders was disheveled and damp from sweat. The only discerning feature about him was the silver mask that he wore, covering eyes that must have been livid and furious.

He glared down at Kira hard, his hands quivering from a frightening rage. "You and your team of failures almost got yourselves killed, or worst still, captured. You were just that tiny bit away from exposing me," His husky voice hissed as he shoved the gun barrel against Kira's forehead repeatedly. "As if that wasn't bad enough, you failed to obtain the object. So in the end, all this mission did was to warn Clyne to raise his guard. Tell me, should I just pull the trigger and blow you to bits, Kira?"

Kira remained silent, staring steadily at him, his dark amethyst eyes betraying no emotion. There was the sound of footsteps behind him and Stellar's voice rang out. "Clyne already knew of the mission. He had more guards on surveillance tonight. We fell into a trap, Rau-"

The gun barrel shifted away from Kira's face to point somewhere over his right shoulder. "Do you want to take his place, Stellar?" The man snapped. There was shocked silence, followed by a nearly inaudible "No, sir".

"Then get back in line, before I shoot all four of you."

There was a tentative shuffle as Stellar moved back to her position. The Glock returned to pointing at Kira. "I could fire all 17 bullets. As soon as the first one hits you, you'll be dead. The last sixteen will just be for me to relieve my anger." He smirked and took a step closer to Kira, pushing the barrel into the side of his head. He stared down at Kira who met his eyes without cringing.

It wasn't a silent battle of wits. Neither was it an outright declaration of hostilities or defiance of any sort. It was simply the resignation of a man who could glare down the barrel of a Glock 17L pistol without feeling a tinge of fear because he didn't care if he died. In fact, it was almost a familiar feeling, Kira mused to himself. The pressure of a gun barrel pressed against his temple, the smell of sweat and fury, the tide of hatred, loathing and contempt that blossomed deep in his stomach and threatened to surge through him. Kira almost laughed at the uncanny familiarity.

And then the pressure at his brow eased and the Glock was removed. Rau's expression softened with sly mirth. "But I won't kill you." He laughed, exposing perfect white teeth. "I invested so much in you. Though you seem to have turned out as failures, I'm not going to toss all my money into the drain. You'll have one more chance to set things right..." He activated the safety catch on the pistol and tossed it onto the desk behind him, before he walked around it and fell into the large plush chair. He swung both legs onto the desk and leaned back, watching Kira. "You have one more chance," He repeated, grinning, "to clear up this shit. In about two weeks' time." He paused and settled back comfortably into his chair, hands behind his head. "In the mean time, I want you to keep a low profile until your next mission comes up."

Kira nodded curtly.

A sharp knock at the door broke the deathly silence. Rau eyed the shut door scornfully. "What?" He barked.

The door opened a slit and a man in a white lab coat put his head around the door. "Shani's team just reported to the base, sir. The mission was a success. Would you like to meet them, sir?"

Rau gave a hoot of laughter and applauded. "Well, at least this night didn't turn out to be all that bad," He said, nodding to himself smugly. "I won't meet them, Barkley," The silver mask hid his eyes but there was no hiding the grin that tugged at the corner of his lips. "I'll send Kira."

Kira's head snapped up.

"You can go and meet them for me, Kira. Entertain them," His boss shrugged, "Provide them with a way to release all that adrenalin pumping through their veins."

There was silence. He was watching Kira carefully, a challenging smirk of his face. Kira clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. How he longed to sink his fist into that grinning bastard's face and wipe that smile off him. "Yes, sir," He ground out. Rau merely laughed and gestured towards the scientist at the door. The scientist nodded and beckoned to Kira, swinging open the door to reveal an empty, dimly lit corridor. Kira turned abruptly, tearing his gaze away from the still snickering Rau. He could feel the burning gazes of his team mates but he ignored them and moved steadily out of the door.

"Wait."

He paused in the doorway with the scientist close behind him. "Sir?" The scientist said politely. Kira didn't bother turning around. "Tell them to keep the broken bones and sprains to the minimal. Kira's still got a mission in two week's time."

"Yes, sir."

The guard closed the door behind them. The sound rang out like a gunshot in the silent corridor.

_Author's note: Well, that's done. Please do not hate me. Although I am pretty much hating myself now for what I subjected Kira to… :(_


	6. 5

_Author's note: Warning! Serious angst coming up ahead (doesn't all my fanfics end up like that! :( _

_To askani16: I am so so so so happy to hear from you! To evci: Thanks loads! You're the first reader! Appreciate the support! _

_Now, read on ahead; you've been warned!_

**Chapter 5:**

As an assassin, failures were not tolerated. They were a sign of lack of discipline, of pathetic preemption, of hasty preparation. It added up to being an unsuccessful and completely fucked-up assassin.

Kira fingered the large purple bruise that had risen at the corner of his lips. He bared his teeth at the mirror and slid a finger over his teeth. His gums were bleeding and the inside of his right cheek felt sore from a cut against his teeth. But nothing that would cause severe damage.

He turned on the faucet and filled a glass with cold water to rinse out the taste of blood in his mouth. Then he checked his teeth again before he took in his entire reflection.

Shit, he was a mess. His brown hair was disheveled and slicked with sweat and there was a lump at the back of his head when he had been thrown bodily against the wall. There were bruises blossoming all over his face and a cut on his left cheekbone, split by a ring worn by one of his attackers. His left eye was swollen. Blood vessels stood out in stark relief against the white.

Then he laughed. He wasn't all that pathetic. He remembered the feel of sinking his own fist into the face of one of his tormentors. His pretty face hadn't been so pretty after that, with the blood gushing from his broken nose. But it was four against one, and all trained assassins. It hadn't been an easy fight. Besides, Rau wouldn't be happy if he knew that his prized team, the one who had returned with success, had been crippled by its 'source of entertainment'. So yeah, he had taken most of the blows, some of which, under normal circumstances, he would have been able to block. He was going to hurt so bad when all that adrenalin drained off.

He shed his clothes, peeling off the garments slowly. His arms and shoulders ached when he pulled the stained T-shirt over his head and his back protested in agony when he bent over to tug his jeans and socks off. He left his clothes in a puddle on the tiled floor and stepped into the shower cubicle. Turned the shower on and allowed the hot water to stream over his battered body and soothe the ache and throbbing.

Contusions had begun to form all over his lean frame, darkening at his ribs and spreading all over his stomach.

He closed his eyes. Felt the shower beating down on him. Felt exhaustion and pain combining to take their toll on him.

That was the price of failure.

He raked both hands through his hair and turned his face up towards the shower.

He felt a familiar surge of hate erupt in him. Like a silent, dormant volcano that spewed lava when no one expected it. Hot. Deadly. Fatal. Anger directed at everybody and anybody who dared to stand in his way. Failure, that was something Rau never accepted. And he, he had learnt the hard way that failure spelled adversity. That failure was totally and completely not accepted or tolerated. When you failed a mission, you put your unit members at risk, you put your life on the line, and you could put your boss right in the firing line of the police. So, you couldn't fail. Not once, not ever.

Not unless you wanted to be punished. To be presented to other people like a sacrifice. A human punching bag.

Kira threw his fist at the wall. Saw blood flow through his fingers from his split knuckles. The blood streamed down the white tiles and merged with the water pooling at his feet. And he kept watching, watching as the water slowly turned red.

* * *

_There was a __girl__. Chubby and round, with __golden__ hair and dimpled cheeks. __Hazel eyes._

_Sh__e was running. Towards him. Arms outstretched. Babbling. Laughing. The __girl __dove straight towards him and threw __her__ plump little arms around _his_ right thigh, squeezing tight. He wanted to pick up this strange child and shake __her__, ask __her__ who in the world __she__ was. _

_But suddenly hands emerged from the shadows and tore the __girl__ out of _his_ arms. The child began to scream, and instantly transformed into a spitting, struggling feral animal fighting for __her__ life. But _he_ couldn't do anything, couldn't move, and couldn't call out. So he stood, watching as the __girl__ was dragged away by the unknown strangers lurking in the shade, watching as the darkness closed in on him, until _his_ vision faded into pitch black…_

Kira jolted awake.

There was a ringing in his ears and his heart was thudding painfully against his breast. He lay motionless, panting, staring up at the dark ceiling, contemplating. But once more, just like always, he couldn't understand it. He couldn't grasp the meaning behind this recurring nightmare.

He dragged a hand over his face shakily, trying to brush it off. He realized he was shaking, his hand clammy and his movements uncoordinated and retarded. Drenched in sweat, the soaked sheets clung to his limbs like rope tying him down. He gulped. Took a deep shuddering breath and didn't move. Just stayed lying on the bed, breathing deep, trying to control the muscle spasms. Slowly, wearily, he sat up, a still, huddled figure in the dim darkness. The blinds were drawn down tight over the window, blocking out all form of light. The silence was deafening, like being sucked down the air vent.

He glanced back at the digital clock set on the bedside table. Saw the pulsing red numbers blinking at him in the semi-darkness.

06:12.

He took a shallow breath and pushed the sheets away, swung his legs over the edge of the bed and stood up. His bare feet felt ice cold on the smooth parquet flooring. He shook himself, stretching his arms out, turning his head right and left and twisting his back, trying to unknot his muscles. Then he padded over to the adjoining bathroom and stepped into the shower, turning it on full blast, as hot as he could stand it. He angled his face towards the steaming stream of water and allowed it to flow down his face in rivulets, washing away the sweat and primal fear still lingering from his recent dream.

He stepped out of the shower when he was clean and scoured himself with a towel. Wrapping it around his waist, he stepped up to the mirror at the sink and wiped away the steam that had condensed on the cool glass surface with his palm. Carefully, he brushed and shaved and was out of the bathroom within minutes. Efficiency. It was the key to his success in missions and it was a lesson he had learnt the hard way.

He grabbed one of the neatly folded T-shirts from the drawer, clean underwear and a pair of worn-out jeans hanging in the closet and slipped them on, discarding the towel on the bed. Then he shrugged on his leather jacket and pushed open the door to step out into the cold morning. The sun hadn't quite risen and the quiet street was dimly lit. The grey sky looked overcast. Like it was going to rain.

Kira's apartment faced out onto a quiet, narrow little one-way street. He descended the steps in two strides, skipping the last and hopping down. He was the only street pedestrian at six-thirty in the morning and he strode down the silent neighborhood with his hands deep in his pockets and his collar turned up against the bitterly cold wind.

As he rounded the bend, he saw his destination. A diner, sitting quietly in a vacant carpark. When he entered the diner, he found that he was the only customer in it.

"Morning, Kira. You're up early today. The usual?"

He turned to face the speaker. She was a petite woman, with scarlet hair that spilled over her shoulders in voluptuous curls. She smiled affectionately at him and cocked her head in his direction, leaning a hand against the counter.

"Morning, Flay," He nodded politely, "I'll take the usual, thank you." "Right away," She grinned and swiped at the countertop with a rag. She gestured towards the booth at the farthest end of the diner. "Your usual seat. Be right back." She pushed herself off the counter and turned in the direction of the kitchen, hollering "Sai! Kira's usual!" and collecting several empty glasses of the nearby table.

Kira sauntered past the booths, heading for the last one where he slipped into the seat facing the door. _Instincts. Never have your back to the door. _

It didn't take long before a plate clattered against the table top. "Here you go."

He glanced up at Flay who slid into the seat opposite him and propped her elbows on the red glossy table. She watched as Kira picked at the ice cream with his spoon. He took a large dollop of cream, carefully sliced a square of waffle and balanced it on top of the heap on his spoon. He eyed it warily and satisfied, he took the spoon into his mouth.

"Thanks," He murmured.

Flay just smiled. Then her blue-grey eyes softened. "Trouble at work?" She asked, fingering the bruises on the knuckles of his right hand. Kira winced. He hadn't quite remembered how bad he looked.

"Yeah," He replied quickly, then gave a dismissing wave with his hand. "But don't worry. I'll heal," He grinned, "Fast."


	7. 6

_Author's note: Next chapter up! Entirely on Athrun this time. Oh no, but I think this chapter is kind of boring… What do you think?_

**Chapter 6:**

When Athrun pushed open the large glass doors of the Central Police Headquarters at five minutes to seven in the morning, he was greeted with the sight of stoned, distracted policemen with disheveled hair and crumpled uniforms. They were exhausted, tired and dying to go home.

He managed to push through the group clustered at the entrance and bumped into a female officer bustling towards him from the opposite direction. The file she was holding fell to the ground in an explosion of papers. She spun around and glared at him, her shoulders tensed and rigid as she prepared to release her wrath.

When she saw that it was Athrun, she relaxed.

"Sorry about that, Murrue," Athrun smiled apologetically, as he stooped to gather up her papers. "What's the fuss around here?"

Murrue sighed loudly. She looked terrible. The usual neat bun in which she tied her long brown hair in was disheveled and she looked flustered and annoyed. "There was a case at the shipping dock last night. Twenty crates of chemicals went missing. These boys have been up all night going on wild goose chases, gathering witnesses and doing all the other shit we do. Sometimes, I really hate my job." She snarled.

"Well, you're the Assistant Commissioner," Athrun joked, "You can go ahead and assign any kid to do the dirty job."

Murrue shot him a look, sighed, rolled her eyes and grabbed her file before striding off. Athrun watched as police officers, secretaries and admin personnel ducked aside to allow her passageway. It was like a sea of people parting before her. Boy, this woman had such an authoritative aura.

Shaking his head, he entered the lift and took it up to the sixteenth floor, where he stepped out into the passageway and turned left. Policemen coming in the opposite direction nodded and greeted him while newbies tried to salute as they balanced their coffee mugs. Secretaries brushed past hastily, files under their arms, kitten heels clicking on the well polished floor.

He headed for his office and had just gotten to his desk when a young woman knocked lightly on his door. "Good morning, Chief."

"Morning, Meyrin," He smiled. She dropped a brown paper bag on his table and handed him a Styrofoam cup of steaming hot coffee before plopping down into one of the visitor chairs in front of his desk.

Meyrin was the latest addition to his team. The youngest of the lot, she had scarlet red hair tied in two ponytails that cascade down her back. A tight white blouse and black skirt hugged her figure.

"So," She said, "I heard from Luna about the infiltration at the Clyne Corporation last night. What's going to happen next?"

Athrun shrugged. "We move on. They will make their next move soon and we have to be ready for them. Gather the team in the conference room. I want that meeting started in two minutes."

By the time he entered in the conference room, all had arrived, except Shinn. "Where the hell is he?" Athrun barked as he sank down into the chair at the end of the table. There were nervous shrugs and perplexed glances were exchanged across the table.

Then all of a sudden the door flew open and a black-haired young man burst into the room. "Sorry, sorry! I got held up at the coffee machine!"

Athrun fixed him with a glare. "Next time," He growled, "leave your caffeine needs till after the meeting. Now, sit down."

Shinn nodded quickly and eased his way through the chairs to find a quiet, imperceptible spot to sit in, as far away from his chief's burning gaze as he could. He ended up beside Dearka who snickered, then fell silent when Athrun's gaze turned on him.

Athrun let his glare linger on the two men for a while longer as they squirmed, before directing his attention to the whole room and its occupants. "If there are no further interruptions, let's begin the meeting proper. We'll start with Lunamaria. What have you got? And Meyrin, take notes."

A woman with shoulder-length scarlet red hair glanced up from the report on her desk. Her features were identical to that of Meyrin, and at first glance, all who met them could tell they were sisters. "Shinn and I went down to the crime scene earlier this morning and we did get some statements from the guards on duty last night," she began, "for starters, the footage from the security cameras is useless. At approximately one a.m. last night, the guard on duty reported some malfunctioning of the cameras. Static. Then all of a sudden they came back online and appeared normal. But here's the problem: when the infiltration began at one-thirty a.m., the cameras detected nothing. The perpetrators and the guards chasing them ran past more than ten cameras but none of the cameras picked up the chase. So evidently, these cameras have been tampered with. We have no footage whatsoever of the chase."

"But," Shinn took over the reporting, "what we do know, is that they entered via the air duct which leads from the rooftop. We found scratches along the air vent, caused by some kind of heavy equipment. Maybe something they used to stop their fall when they jumped. This also means that they arrived via a helicopter."

"The guards began their chase when the body heat detectors that we installed outside the target area picked them up. So at least something worked out for us. But we didn't guess that they would infiltrate so soon, so manpower was limited last night. Plus, Assistant Commissioner Ramius pulled out two teams because of the chemical incident at the shipping docks."

"Yes, I heard about that," Athrun frowned. "What else?"

Shinn shrugged, exchanging a glance with Lunamaria. "Nothing much. No fingerprints, no footprints. We managed to collect the shells of the bullets used by the perpetrators and Nicol sent them down to forensics. But they probably won't be able to tell us much. Nicol?"

A young green-haired officer nodded in response. "They're standard shell cases. Based on the cases, I think the perpetrators could be using Glocks. So it doesn't say much. There are hundreds of us using Glocks and any regular citizen with a firearms permit out there could be using a Glock. We won't be able to tell much from the shells, so that's a dead end."

Athrun chewed his bottom lip. _Damn. They were getting nowhere._"What about the scratches you mentioned? What can we gather?"

"The photos are on the third page of the report." There was a rustle of paper as the occupants of the room flipped open the manila file on the table. "Nothing much we can gather. But we did send the photos to the crime scene lab and there are a couple of people analyzing them. We might be able to gather what kind of equipment they used, or maybe not."

"What about the escape vehicle? The black sedan they used? Any leads on that?"

It was Yzak who voiced out. "Unfortunately not. I ran the car plate number through the system. It was a rented car, taken off a rental company just three miles off the crime scene. Rented under the name of Simon Dixon. But that's a false ID. There's no such person in our database."

"And I went down to the rental company with Yzak," Dearka joined in, "firstly, the security cameras picked up nothing. No footage of this 'Simon Dixon'. Secondly, the car was returned at two-thirty a.m. last night, just an hour after the chase. But the car's been vacuumed. It's sparkling clean. No hair, no fingerprints, no whatever. Not a single dust mite."

It was impossible not to feel the disappointment weighing down heavily on the room. An awkward silence had unfolded and suddenly everyone had a tendency to adjust their ties, smooth their skirts or run their hands through their hair.

"Damn!" Athrun's fist landed hard on the conference table, sending a loud thump that made the rest of his team jump. "There's got to be something that can nail these guys!"

He stared round the table, emerald eyes seething. "I need more than this. Meyrin, I want the minutes of this meeting on my table by this afternoon. Luna, Shinn, go through that air vent. Check every bolt, every screw. I don't care if you take it apart piece by piece. Dearka, I want you to run through that car all over again. Check the tyres, the boot, underneath the car. Damn, check the exhaust pipe too. Yzak, I want you to run down to the rental company again. Any fingerprints on the counter, the logbook. Anything this 'Simon Dixon' touched, I want it sent to the lab. Nicol, follow up with the forensics lab. I want all reports and results on my desk by this evening. If they're not, I'm going to charge down to the lab and screw them. Got it? Now, move!"

_Author's note: So? Actually, I think this chapter was a bit more about introducing the other characters. Hope it's not too boring, and I'm not that good at all this police jargon. Review, review, review!_


	8. 7

_Author's note: Next chapter! Hmm… I think I'm writing way too fast. Anyways, a little more insight into what kind of characters Athrun and Kira are. _

**Chapter 7:**

The last day of August. A Wednesday night. Cool, starless evening.

Kira turned the collar of his jacket up and strolled onwards, his hands deep in his pockets. A drunk man tottered out of the alley and fell in his path, groaning. Kira merely sidestepped him and continued on his way. Somewhere, there was wild laughter. A woman screamed. The sound of glass breaking. A dangerous place, but he could fit in. No problem.

He wove his way through the intoxicated crowd and found himself at the steps of a pub located at the end of the block. Its brick façade was doused heavily in red graffiti and the alley that flanked its left was eerily dark. He pushed open the door and a deafening noise engulfed him from inside. Lights were pulsating wildly and music blared through the speakers. The air was heavy with smoke and an intoxicating smell of alcohol, sweat and sex assaulted him.

Kira wove his way towards the bar and settled down on an empty stool, trying to spot the familiar mop of blonde hair in the pub.

"Hey, Kira!" Suddenly, an arm strung itself around his neck. A petite woman with long cascading brown curls swayed into his line of vision. "Looking for Stellar?" She said, batting her eyelash extensions teasingly. Kira smirked back in response and ran his hand through the woman's long tresses. "She's busy with some loser in the back alley. Meantime, why don't you spend some time with me, baby? I've got a special Kira-price." She straddled his thighs and bent her head, suckling gently at his neck.

"Back off, Cora." A hand pushed the woman aside gently. "Leave Kira alone."

Stellar was smiling, her magneta eyes glowing in the strobing lights. She hooked an arm through Kira's and shook her head at Cora, who was giving her signature pout. "No," She yelled, trying to make herself heard through the pulsing music. "Leave him alone." Cora gave a final pout. Then she grinned, blew a kiss at Kira and sauntered off into the gyrating bodies on the dance floor.

"Sorry," Stellar mouthed. She pulled Kira off the bar stool and headed for the door. Outside, she heaved a sigh of relief and took a deep breath of the night air. She raised her arms skywards in a sign of freedom. Kira watched her, a gentle smile tugging at his lips. When she turned around, his smile faded. Under the harsh streetlight, Stellar looked terrible. Her blonde shoulder-length hair was all mussed up and her lipstick was smeared across her cheek. The collar of her low-cut blouse was open and the second button was hanging by a single thread. A single scratch ran across the right side of her neck.

"That bastard," Kira growled. He spun around, ready to crash through the doors again, when a gentle hand grasped his forearm and pulled him back.

"Don't." Stellar said simply.

"What do you mean by 'don't'?" He turned back to look at her, snarling. His bright amethyst eyes had turned dark with anger and malicious intent. He shrugged free of her restraining hand and placed both of his on her shoulders, staring intently into her eyes. "Tell me who it is."

"No, I won't."

"Even if you don't, I'll be able to find out who it is. Or I could just kill everyone inside."

"Don't worry about it."

"He hurt you." A gentle finger found its way to the corner of her lips, fondling gently at the smeared lipstick and the light bruise.

"Ah, don't worry," She moved his hand aside and gave him one of the charming smiles she used whenever she wanted something from a guy. Kira didn't buy it. In fact, if it was possible, the look on his face became more murderous. "Hey," She murmured, running her hands soothingly over his forearms. "I'm fine. Don't worry about it." Then she grinned and put a finger to her lips in a shushing gesture. She reached into her right boot, hopping about on one foot, and pulled out a stack of crumpled bills. "Look what I swiped off the loser. Besides, he didn't get away unscathed. He won't be in a hurry to look for women anytime soon." She paused and a wide smirk crossed her face. "I gave him a kick in the balls and left him lying unconscious in the ditch. No one treats me like that and gets away. Your Stellar can protect herself."

Kira's face lit up in a grin.

"So," She laughed, "don't worry about it." She hooked her arm through his again and led him down the street, away from the pub. They were silent for a moment, before Stellar gazed up at him with a bittersweet smile on her face.

"So, is this our attempt at a normal civilized lifestyle? The boyfriend picks up his girl from work?"

Kira shrugged.

"You know," she continued, laying her head on his shoulder as they continued walking, "I think I might like it."

* * *

"Are you heading somewhere?" Lacus smiled, standing in the driveway beside him.

Athrun shook his head. "Probably going home," he shrugged, "Shower, take a break, then back to the office again in the morning." The police department had been crazy the past few days as the crime scene lab churned out the results and his subordinates piled report after report on his desk. But there had been nothing useful at all amidst all that paper. Nothing at all. Dead end. Athrun had been keeping an optimistic front, but deep inside he knew that there were no more leads. It was only when Lacus had rung the office that he decided to drop his work and come over for dinner. Thirty-six hours. That had been how long he had been working non-stop.

"Well," Lacus smiled sheepishly, fiddling with her fingers. "Could you be my chauffeur? I'm going to visit the Yamatos."

Athrun did a small double-take, slightly taken aback, but he nodded and opened the passenger door for her.

The Yamatos didn't live far and fifteen minutes later, Athrun drew up at the side of the road, outside a small house with a front yard. Lacus stepped out onto the kerb and closed the door behind her. She waited until Athrun had locked the car and walked around the hood. Then they trudged up the stone path towards the little bungalow together.

Athrun pressed the button. A faint chime resounded deep inside the bungalow. Then there was silence and slow footsteps came up to the door. They heard the clatter of a door chain swinging against the wood and the dull thump of a bolt. The French door swung open on its hinges to reveal a middle-aged woman.

She was a petite lady with purple tresses flowing over her shoulders. Her skin was pale and white underneath a plain dress. She had a crimson apron on and she was wiping her hands on its hem. When she saw them, she smiled. "Hello, Athrun, Lacus." She had a soft, shy voice.

"Evening, Mrs Yamato," Lacus smiled.

She stepped aside and ushered them into the house. Then she closed the door and led them into the living room. "Be right back," She smiled, "Make yourself at home. I'll get Cagalli." She hurried out of the living room.

Athrun took a seat on the couch, watching as Lacus paced the edge of the room. She was studying the photographs lining the white shelves. Lacus picked one up and looked hard at the smiling family captured in the picture. It was at a local park. There was a much younger Mrs Caridad Yamato, with loose purple hair billowing in the wind. Her husband, Haruma Yamato was standing beside her, his arm slung around her slender waist. And crouching down in front of them were their two young children.

Cagalli Yamato was three years old. She was a chubby little girl with blonde hair and dimples in her plump cheeks. Her short arms were wrapped tightly around her twin.

Kira Yamato.

He was Cagalli's twin even though they looked nothing alike. He was a very good-looking child, with beautiful amethyst eyes and unruly brown hair. A boyish grin lit up his handsome face.

Lacus shifted her hand to run her fingers lightly over Kira Yamato's face. It was a face that she saw in her dreams, in her faded memories.

"Mom found that picture yesterday."

Lacus startled and turned. Saw Cagalli Yamato standing in the doorway. She was no longer that round, chubby kid in the photograph. Instead, a slim young woman stood in its place. Her blonde hair was neatly combed. An attractive smile, with dimples in her cheeks.

"She unlocked the attic yesterday and sorted things out. Found that photograph and framed it. It almost drove Dad crazy." She said, walking over to the couch. She gave a pained smile. Lacus returned her gaze to the framed photograph and placed it carefully back in its place. Then she turned around and joined them on the couch.

"Where's your dad?" Athrun said.

Cagalli shrugged. She glanced away and began to pick at the threads of the couch's upholstery. "Went out for a walk, I guess. There's been a lot of tension in the house." She paused, then added, "because of tomorrow."

They fell silent and Lacus cast her glance back at the framed photograph. Saw the beaming face of Kira Yamato.

The sound of footsteps made them look up. Mrs Yamato was hurrying back with a tray. "Here," She offered, "help yourselves."

She distributed plates of cookies to her young visitors. Lacus thanked her and balanced the plate on her knee. She picked up one of the butter cookies. Glanced at Cagalli to see that she was devouring the plate of cookies mechanically. She lifted the cookie to her lips and tried to ignore the fact that Mrs Yamato's butter cookies had been her son's favourite.

Mrs Yamato only made them once a year. The last day of August. Maybe it was a commemoration of sorts, or an anniversary, or maybe just some kind of blind hop. Blind hope that her son, who had disappeared thirteen years ago might come back.

_Author's note: Okay, I know some of the characters are OOC, especially Stellar. But I hope it doesn't affect your enjoyment of the story. Please, please review! Good or bad comments all accepted!_


	9. 8

_Author's note: Yay! My next chapter's up! Read on, read on!_

**Chapter 8:**

"_So you'll be my date for that night?"_

Athrun could detect the hopefulness in Lacus' voice. "I don't know, Lacus," He groaned, running a hand through disheveled navy blue hair. He could sense a severe headache coming on.

"_Come on, Athrun._" Lacus was as persistent as ever. "_Pretty please. Just one night. What are friends for, eh? There's going to be socializing, there's going to drinks: wine, champagne, cocktails-"_

He glanced up when he heard a knock and saw Meyrin standing in his doorway, holding a file. _Need you to sign this,_ she mouthed at him. He nodded and fiddled with the phone receiver, balancing it between his left ear and shoulder so he could scrawl over the document Meyrin held. Lacus was still engaged in her monologue when Meyrin left his office.

"-_there's going to be songs, there's going to be dancing-"_

"I don't dance, Lacus," Athrun breathed out in exasperation. He covered his eyes with his free hand and sank back into his leather chair.

"_I know, I know. But there's a lot more you can do. I'm just asking you to accompany me for that night, Athrun. I can't possibly turn up dateless during a party which my father organizes to welcome me home, right? The hostess can't be dateless, Athrun!"_

Despair had begun to creep into Lacus' voice. _Damn!_ He could just predict how this conversation was going to end. Lacus could be so… manipulative, when she wanted to be. He tried one last attempt at rejecting her. "You know how busy I am, Lacus. I've got that car accident down at the highway, and the bank robbery from last month, and the third attempt at infiltrating your father's corporation, and-"

"_Did I mention that Father's inviting many of his business associates as well? There's going to be close to a hundred guests at the party, many of whom are big names in the pharmaceutical industry. The invitations were sent out weeks ago and I only have two days, Athrun, TWO days to find a date. You absolutely cannot leave me in the lurch-"_

Athrun went silent.

"-_so you have got to help me. It's just three hours, Athrun, THREE hours of your time. But I'll be indebted to you forever… Are you listening, Athrun?"_

Athrun chewed on his bottom lip. His fingers drummed the table nervously. "What did you say just now? About the guests invited?"

There was a pause on the other side of the phone. "_That most of them are Father's business associates?"_

"And?" Athrun snapped impatiently.

"_That they're big names in the industry? What's going on, Athrun?"_

Athrun bit the tip of his thumb thoughtfully, a nervous frown on his face. _Damn. _He had a pretty good idea what was going to happen at that party. "Listen Lacus, I've gotta run. I'll be your date for that night. Promise. And I'll like to drop by later this evening, to talk to you and your father about the party. Understand?"

When Lacus had finally hung up, he got up from behind his desk. He poked his head round the door of his office. His department was an utter zoo. Phones were ringing incessantly. Meyrin was juggling three phones in her hands. Lunamaria was buried behind a stack of files, a pencil balanced behind her ear. Shinn was chomping rapidly through a packet of chips, his eyes zipping quickly across his computer screen. Behind him, Dearka was chewing down on the end of a pen, his fingers typing furiously on the keyboard. At the other end of the room, Nicol was scribbling furiously on a notepad, watching as Yzak screamed down the phone at someone who had gotten on his nerves.

He waited till Yzak had slammed the phone down in the phone cradle, then yelled across the room. "I want a meeting in five minutes, people. Drop everything you are doing immediately!"

"What's wrong?" Luna glanced up from behind the stack of reports.

"I know when the Clyne corporation perpetrators are going to strike next," Athrun replied grimly.

* * *

Orga Sabnak was in the lounge, reclining in a plush armchair, a novel in his hands. He raised his head to gaze at Kira and his team when they entered the room and an arrogant smirk played across his lips. "Well, look who's come to pay us another visit." He sneered, swinging his legs over the armrest to stand up.

One of his mates glanced up from where he lay sprawled on the ground. A mop of pale green hair covered his left eye. When he saw the newcomers, his expression turned murderous. He tore off his headphones and stood up, advancing quickly towards Kira. Then he started to run and threw his fist forward, aiming for Kira's face, only to be stopped by Orga Sabnak who put out a hand to hold him back.

"Get the fuck out of my way," Shani Andras snarled, trying to get past. "That guy blackened my eye last time. I'm not going to take that lying down."

"Ssh, Shani," Orga grinned. Even though he was addressing his teammate, he was staring straight at Kira. "Don't worry. Let me handle this."

Kira's dark eyes remained expressionless even as Orga Sabnak approached him, the pompous leer staring at him right in the face. "Did Rau send you as a human punching bag again?" He laughed and made a show of cracking his knuckles and flexing his hands. "Rau sure knows what we like." The rest of his teammates stood and came to stand beside their leader, forming an impervious semicircle barrier in front of Kira. Cornering him. Threatening him.

Kira didn't move. Just concentrated his glare on the obnoxious bastard that was chewing on his tether. A firm hand landed on his shoulder, squeezing gently and Stellar stepped forward. "Back off, Sabnak." She hissed.

The smirk on Orga's face merely widened. "Am I supposed to feel threatened?"

"Touch him and you'll have to deal with us. No more like last time, Sabnak. Those were Rau's orders and it was four against one. This time, it's different."

"Bite me."

"My pleasure."

Stellar took a menacing step forward and Orga reacted instantly, ducking as she swung a roundhouse kick at his head. The momentum drove her round, spinning on her left foot and she threw a punch at his face, but found herself restrained by Kira's hand which shot out and grasped her wrist.

"Stop it," he growled, shaking her roughly.

She spun around and glared at him, "Kira-" but he cut her off with a curt "That's enough."

She shot a malicious glare at Orga who simply smirked back at her. "That's right, kitty. You should listen to him."

Kira released her and pushed her in the direction of Auel and Sting, who caught his cue and surrounded Stellar. Just in case she decided to react further to Orga's insults. And Kira knew from experience that she would. Then he faced his tormentor and gave him a charming smile. "I'm only here on Rau's instructions. You too, I suppose. Now, without Rau's orders, you wouldn't be able to touch me, would you?"

The grin on Orga's face subsided slightly. That was the truth. They only answered to Rau. Without his permission, he could never touch Kira or any of his team. But he didn't back down and merely smirked, "You're safe," he purred and ran his tongue over his upper lip, like he was savouring a dish, "For now." He gave a soft laugh, "won't be long before Rau serves you up on a platter, Kira. And when he does, I'm not going to stop Shani from doing what he wants." The grin on his face had become feral and his eyes were large and wild.

Stellar lunged forward but Auel threw an arm around her shoulders and Sting stood in front, using his body to block her advance. Kira remained motionless, his violet eyes challenging. _Yeah, it wouldn't take long. But he wouldn't be the one trussed up on that platter._

The door of the lounge flew open, hitting the wall with a loud bang that caught all their attention. There was a man in a white lab coat standing in the doorway, a hand pressed against the door. His face was stern and cold and all he said was "Rau's waiting."

_Author's note: Expect a little more action to come in the next chapter! Don't forget to review, review, review!_


	10. 9

_Author's note: Finally, the next chapter's up. Sorry for the delay, folks, but I had to work out some kinks in the story plot. Not really good at, or used to, writing suspense / thriller / crime – lots of irregularities in the plot. Hope I've cleared up most of them :D but forgive me if you spot any mistakes! Do point them out if you see any. And now, on with the show!_

**Chapter 9:**

Rau ran a finger over the globe on his desk. The sphere teetered on its axle dangerously. He was staring intently at the report on his desk, the silver mask hiding the emotion in his eyes but failing to hide the grim expression in his lips, which were pressed tight into a fine line.

They had been standing at attention before his desk for half an hour when Auel began fiddling with the hem of his shirt and shifting from one foot to the other. Kira stilled him with a glare that he threw over his shoulder. His young companion gave a small pathetic pout of the lips. Kira softened his gaze - just a little - to let him know that he understood. The endless waiting had made the silence in the room oppressive. Rau was ignoring their presence completely. He hadn't even glanced up when they filed into his room and took up position before him.

The mental clock in Kira's head was ticking. Five minutes. Ten. Twenty. Then thirty, and still Rau remained engrossed in the files on his desk. It was only when forty-five minutes had lapsed that Rau raised his head slightly. The silver mask glinted under the harsh fluorescent lights of his office, effectively hiding any hint of emotion.

"I've received reports that the serum is in the Clyne Mansion." There was a look of annoyance on his face. "In Siegel Clyne's own house, because he's on his guard." An irate glance was tossed in Kira's direction. "There's going to be a homecoming party for his daughter in two days and I want you to get into that house and sneak that serum out of there," A grin crossed Rau's face. "Minimal damage. Won't be a pleasant sight if someone gets hurt during the party."

Then the smile faded as quickly as it had come. "This time, Orga will be in charge." He glared hard at Kira again, a vein pulsing angrily at his neck. "Your team will assist Orga and you will take orders from him. Do I make myself clear?" The wave of disbelief and frustration that came from his team mates behind him was difficult to ignore but there was only one acceptable reply and Kira merely nodded curtly. _Crystal clear._

Rau leaned back into his chair, letting his eyes rove over all eight of them. "I want that serum," he growled, "and the eight of you are going to get it for me. Understand?" Without waiting for a reply, he gave a dismissive wave of his hand. _End of conversation._

He went back to frowning at the reports on his desk. As though they had never been there, never existed.

They were turning to leave, Orga already halfway through the door when he snapped his fingers. Immediately, they froze where they were and turned their heads. "And Kira?" There was a pregnant pause and Rau's lips twitched dangerously, "don't you fucking screw this up again."

* * *

He tapped the rubber end of the pencil against the surface of his table repeatedly. Once, twice, thrice. It was a habit Athrun had, when he was deep in thought. And he was _seriously_ deep in thought. He had a floor-plan of the Clyne Mansion laid out on his table, with penciled circles scattered across the map.

_Team #1: the main entrance. _

_Team #2: the gate at the backyard. _

_Team #3: Patrolling the ground floor. _

_Team #4: Patrolling the second floor. _

He counted them off on his fingers, and made a mental note to remind Team Four to pay special attention to the windows in case those perpetrators decided to break in. But he highly doubted it. It was too obvious, too attention-seeking. Didn't fit their typical modus operandi. They preferred more subtle ways of infiltrating and were more likely to enter via the front door, mingling with the guests. _Or disguising themselves as part of the household personnel_, Athrun thought. He made another mental note to double-check the ID of all those working part-time or full-time in the Clyne Mansion and triple-check their background information.

An arrow, drawn with a red marker, drew attention to Siegel Clyne's study, which was located on the second floor. Athrun stared at it, chewing on the end of his pencil thoughtfully, and added a circle around the said room. _Team #5: Eyes on the target._ Then he thought better and erased the circle. Would be too obvious if he had so many people watching it. That would be like announcing to the whole wide world that the serum was kept inside Siegel's study.

No. Better to put all the big guns in Team Four, so that one team was good enough. He put an asterisk in the penciled circle on the second floor. Then shrugging his shoulders and turning his head from side to side to ease the tension in his shoulders, he folded up the floor-plan and put it aside to join the rapidly increasing pile on his desk.

God, he needed a break. Athrun stood up, laced his fingers together and stretched his arms above his head. His back cracked and he breathed out a sigh. Grabbing the mug at the corner of his desk, he marched out of his office, passed empty cubicles shrouded in darkness and made his way into the pantry where a pot of coffee was still simmering quietly. He poured himself a large cup and took a long swig. Lacus had always had issues with his caffeine intake. But tonight, to hell with it. She didn't need to know and damn, he needed the caffeine more than ever.

He trudged back to his office, cradling his cup in both hands to warm them. As he sank down into his leather chair, he risked a glance at the digital clock on his wall. The pulsing red numerals screamed back at him.

02:16.

He gazed back at the mountain of reports covering his desk. Shinn and Luna had sent in their report. They had taken apart the air vent, one sheet of metal at a time. Nothing. No prints, no hair, no fabrics caught in any of the blots. Nothing. The crime scene lab had found nothing on the scratch. There was no hint of paint. Impossible to tell what tool had been used. Could have been a hammer, a screwdriver, a chisel, maybe even an unknown gadget. Yzak and Dearka had nothing on the rented car. The owner of the rental company couldn't even offer a decent description of this 'Simon Dixon'. The crime scene lab had no leads on the shell cases. Nicol had the video cameras taken apart, analysed and processed but whoever or whatever had caused the malfunction could not be determined. Some computer virus, the technicians had concluded.

_That explained so much_, Athrun had thought sarcastically.

He let his head fall onto the back of his chair and closed his eyes. Damn, he never thought that he had signed up for such a ride. When both his parents had died and Siegel Clyne had taken him under his wing, the police academy had seemed such an ideal option. He had graduated quickly and easily, his wit and intelligence startling his professors and mentors. He had found himself admitted immediately into law enforcement and rising through the ranks faster than any one had expected, his sense of dedication and responsibility impressing his superiors, until he had found himself the chief of a special unit in the criminal investigation department. That was when the real shit had begun.

Athrun cracked open his eyes and stared up at his ceiling.

But then again, which job didn't have its ups and downs? He smiled to himself. Well, at least, he enjoyed his work. The long long hours, non-existent sleep and danger aside, there was a sense of satisfaction knowing he had protected someone each time he closed a case.

He rummaged through the documents covering his desk, pushing them aside so that he could reach the photo frame tucked away behind a stack of manila files. Nestled in the burnished frame was the torn and tattered picture of a woman with short navy blue hair and bright sparkling eyes. He ran his finger lightly and tenderly over the glass.

"Wish you were here," Athrun whispered softly, the ghost of a smile gracing his lips, "Mum…"

True, Siegel Clyne had given him a home, a family, an education, everything his young, traumatized little mind could have ever hoped for. He regarded Siegel as his father, and Lacus as the sister he had never had. But sometimes, just sometimes, he felt so alone.

He shook himself. Now wasn't a time to be sentimental and nostalgic. He was on a mission, a duty to protect his 'father' and 'sister' and perhaps, the whole country too, if he didn't want some new virus or disease wrecking havoc.

Damn, he had a vial of serum to protect, and he wasn't about to allow some son-of-a -bitch to lay a finger on it.

_Author's note: Hmm… I think this was a lousy chapter. It was meant to give a little insight into Athrun's background. Kira's will come later. But this chapter just doesn't seem right... To askani16, evci, shad999 and Amazing, thanks loads for the support, and askani16, I think this chapter addresses Athrun and Lacus' relationship, whether it really is a KxL fic, you're going to have to read on to find out! :D haha, don't forget to review review review!_


	11. 10

_Author's note: Ooh… two chapters in a row. Hope this one is better! Read on and don't forget to review review review!_

**Chapter 10:**

The white limousine drove up towards the mansion and glided to a halt at the bottom of the grand stairway. A young doorman in a suit scurried towards the limousine and swung open the door with a flourish. Kira stepped out onto the granite setts and glanced up at the towering manor on its low hill. He tilted his head slightly at the doorman and extended a hand to Stellar. Then they stood side by side under the rapidly darkening sky. The doorman closed the door and patted the limousine twice on the hood. The car started off and glided around the roundabout.

They began the ascent up the grand stairway. At the top, they found themselves on a red carpet with gold trim, laid out on the marble of the front portico. The entire portico was swarmed with guests, standing in two lines. At the head of the queues was an unmistakable huddle of uniformed cops.

Kira felt a gentle prod at his ribs. He turned to cast a glance at Stellar. She was eyeing the police officers warily. They were checking IDs, patting down guests, rummaging through pockets and purses. She leaned close to Kira's right ear. "Security's quite tight," she murmured, "seems like Clyne is on his guard."

He nodded, skimming the crowd quickly with dark amethyst eyes. Rau had sent someone over with a floor-plan of the Clyne Mansion, snapshots of all the people who would be in the house that evening, a map with the police checkpoints neatly marked out, as well as their clothes for the event. Two days of detailed planning and careful analysis. And now, it was time for the performance.

Kira led Stellar towards the crowd and they joined the queue, Stellar on the right and Kira on the left. The two lines inched forward slowly. Stellar was right. Security was tight. Every single guest was searched and prodded and every single purse or wallet examined closely.

Siegel Clyne was being wary.

It was Stellar who reached the checkpoint first. "Evening, ma'am," a female officer, with long, scarlet red hair in pony-tails and a laptop in front of her, smiled. A polite smile, distracted and half-hearted. They meant business. "May I have your invitation and your ID?" she said, "And we need to search your purse." She gestured at the shiny clutch in Stellar's hands. "Of course," Stellar flashed a beautiful, charming smile as she handed over fake ID and invitation papers. The red-headed female officer began to type with her right hand, holding Stellar's ID in her left. Another female officer, also with scarlet red hair, this time shoulder-length, stepped up to Stellar and made a vague gesture to signal that she was going to touch her. Stellar smiled, spread her arms like an offering and the female officer went about her business.

_Sisters_, Kira thought, as he watched the faces of the two female officers closely.

A male officer with pale green hair emptied the contents of her clutch on the wooden desk and ran a hand through the stuff, sorting them. There was a lipstick, a make-up compact case, a gold pen, a bunch of keys and a small, dainty purse which he turned over onto the desk to find only coins. He picked up the lipstick and uncapped it, opened the compact case, tried the pen, examined each key and glanced through the coins. _Talk about tight security_, Kira thought. But he wasn't worried about the examination. He was more concerned about the ID check.

The red-haired female officer continued scanning through what she had on her screen, her index finger scrolling rapidly on the mouse. Then she smiled. "Ah, Miss Irene Thatcher... Here's your ID. Sorry for the inconvenience."

Kira smiled inwardly. Sting could always do miracles with the computer.

"No problem. I understand." Stellar smiled. The male officer replaced everything in the clutch and returned it, then gestured her forward.

Stellar had passed through safely. No problem.

It took another minute and a half before Kira was at the desk. "Evening, sir," the same red-headed female officer smiled. With that same distracted, half-hearted smile. "Your invitation, sir, and your ID."

Kira delved into his trouser pocket and pulled out a black wallet. Took out the fake ID from the plastic transparent pocket and tugged out the fake invitation papers. He passed them both to the female officer, gave her a charming smile and achieved the effect he wanted.

The female officer blushed slightly.

"May we see the contents of your pockets, sir?" The other female police officer asked. She looked a little sterner, a little more serious. Kira smiled. _A little more difficult to seduce. The elder sister then. More experience, more mature. Seen her fair share of charming young men._

"Of course."

He laid his wallet out on the wooden desk and reached into his pockets again, retrieving a bunch of keys and a black pen. The male police officer stepped up to him. "We're conducting a physical check," he explained. Kira nodded his approval and the officer began to pat him down, starting from under his arms, down his waist, both legs, then up again and over his arms. He even ran a metal detector over Kira before nodding satisfactorily. Behind him, the female officer was rifling through his contents with the same kind of precision.

There was someone else besides the three police officers. A young man in a tux, leaning against the frame of the door, his arms crossed casually in front of his chest. He looked like a guest, but he wasn't in line, and he wasn't waiting to be checked. He was just gazing down the line and watching the officers examine the guests. Navy blue hair. Sparkling emerald eyes swept over the crowd, examining each guest thoroughly and intently, and came to land on Kira.

Kira smiled and nodded at him in acknowledgement. The stranger smiled back, but it was a smile that didn't quite go to his eyes. Those deep green eyes kept watching him closely. Kira knew that expression well. It was guarded. The smile was merely a form of politesse. He hadn't dropped his guard. _A__ smart, cautious, wary kind of guy._

Kira knew people like that. They were trouble.

"Here it is, Mr Henry Alexander," The female police officer extended a hand to return his ID. Kira thanked her and reached for his card. He allowed their fingers to brush, then purposefully flashed an apologetic smile. He returned his properties to his pockets, cranked up the charm in his smile and stepped through the main doors of the Clyne Mansion.

He had passed through safely.

No problem.


	12. 11

_Author's note: Ooh, finally, Kira and Lacus cross each other's path!_

**Chapter 9:**

The front entrance led to the vestibule of the Clyne Mansion where the party was already in full swing. A huge chandelier hung low from the ceiling, bathing the foyer in a warm orange glow. All around, people were gathered in throngs, laughing and talking. Wine glasses clinked. Music played in the background, barely audible.

A waiter swept towards them and offered two glasses of champagne on a silver tray. Kira snagged both glasses, handed one to Stellar and took a sip from his. The golden liquid coursed down his throat and made him feel alive. They wove their way through the crowd and emerged in a vast hall, designed like an atrium. Waiters and waitresses slid through the crowd lithely, balancing their silver trays. Guests congregated along the edges of the hall as they socialized, leaving the center empty for the couples dancing. Through the crowd, Kira caught a glimpse of the grand stairway which led up to the second and third floors of the Clyne Mansion.

And he didn't miss the hint of movement on the second floor. There was a team patrolling up there.

"Let's go," Stellar murmured. He glanced at her to see her amber eyes bright and alert as they swept through the crowd. She turned to smile at him reassuringly. They headed for the left wing and parted ways as Stellar entered the Ladies and Kira the Gents.

The restroom was lit by a warm glow that emanated from intricately designed lamps. It was empty when Kira entered it. No one at the urinals. He strolled past all the cubicles - all open and void – and slid into the last one, locking the door behind him.

Quickly, he ran his eyes over the walls, feeling with his hands. Then he stood on the toilet so that he could inspect the ceiling. With deft fingers, he felt around the ceramic bowl, behind the tank, and was pleased to find no hidden cameras or listening bugs.

Standing, he removed his black pen from his jacket pocket and unscrewed it. He emptied the ink cartridge onto his palm and dug into the empty metal shell, feeling for the little knob at the back. When he depressed it, a metal blade instantly flicked out. Holding the blade between his teeth, he reached into his trouser pocket for his wallet and carefully slid the inner leather lining. Hidden inside the pocket of leather were two tiny little gadgets, no bigger than the head of a pin. He slipped one of them into his mouth, pressing it firmly onto his molar tooth. The other, he put into his right ear. Immediately, a burst of static filled his ear and as it faded, he heard the faint sounds of breathing and background noise.

"This is K reporting. Testing 1, 2, 3. Do you copy?" He muttered, his lips barely moving.

"_I hear you, loud and clear. Over. " _Sting's voice replied.

"_Welcome to the club, K…"_ Kira bit his lip as Orga Sabnak's arrogant voice filled his ear, dripping with sarcasm.

"Is Stellar online yet?"

"_No. We haven't heard from-" _Sting was cut off by another burst of static as Stellar's voice took over. "_This is S reporting. I'm online. Over."_

Bingo, Phase One complete. They were suited up and ready to go.

* * *

Athrun was standing on the third floor, gazing down at the swirling, shifting crowd. He lifted the collar of his tux and spoke into the hidden microphone. "Anything unusual, Team #1?"

Meyrin's voice was clear through the hearing device in his ear, "_Nothing, Chief. Nearly all the guests have arrived. We only have a few more people in line."_

"Team #2?"

"_Negative, Sir. The front garden, backyard and grounds are all secure."_

He glanced down at the dancing crowd below him, and spotted his blonde-haired subordinate leaning against a pillar. "What is Team #3's status?"

He noticed Dearka lifting his collar to speak. "_Nothing unusual, Sir." _Then a pause and a chuckle, "_Except for this sexy woman who's so sexy that it's abnormal, Chief. Maybe we should bring her in and-"_

"Just focus on your job, Elsman," Athrun snapped, "Team #4? Any updates?"

"_Nothing, Chief," _Yzak replied, _"The second floor is currently empty. Most guests are bypassing us to head up to the rooftop pool. No suspicious sightings at the moment."_

"Alright," Athrun said, "they may have already entered the Clyne Mansion so I want all teams on high alert. Keep everyone in the loop as soon as you see anything unusual. Anything at all, understand? Report first, question later. Got me?"

There was a murmur of 'yes, sir's. Athrun returned to watching the crowd. _They_ were down there, he was sure. Those perpetrators who had infiltrated the Clyne Corporation. He could feel it - that rush of adrenalin and imminent danger in his blood. This time, he was going to nail them.

* * *

Kira eyed the crowd closely as he sipped his glass of champagne.

_Anthony Russell, the CEO of PEG corporation - a pharmaceutical company based in Germany. Sylvana Dion, representative of LEX Company which supplied raw chemicals. Eleanor Jackson, Siegel Clyne's personal assistant. Michael Li, the vice-president of the National Medical Association._

He could identify and recognize nearly all the faces from the snapshots they had spent the past two days memorizing. He spotted Orga Sabnak, standing across the hall, with his female teammate by his side. Their eyes met for a second - Orga's arrogant and conceited, Kira's hard and challenging – then broke away again to skim the crowd watchfully.

A waiter brushed past, offering his silver tray. Kira raised a hand, about to smile and dismiss him, when he caught sight of the pale blue hair and the mischievious glint in his eye. Auel Neider grinned and winked, then wove through the crowd sleekly, balancing his silver tray with a single hand. Kira watched him go, his lips crooked in a smile. _O__ur attempt at a normal civilized lifestyle. _He remembered Stellar saying to him as they stood side-by-side under the harsh streetlight, his gentle fingers caressing her bruised and swollen lips. _Auel would make a good waiter, _Kira thought bitterly,_ if they ever got out of this dog-eat-dog world,_ _or_ _out of Rau Le Creuset's clutches. Maybe they they could all get a job, a normal kind of job._

Orga's voice emanating through the earpiece interrupted his thoughts. "_S, Siegel Clyne is ten feet from you, on your right. Do your thing. K, watch her back. Warn us if you see anything."_

Kira didn't turn around, but he felt Stellar push off the pillar and a glass of half-drunk champagne was slipped into his free hand subtly. He watched as his blonde-haired companion slid through the crowd, heading for a group of men huddled close to the cocktail bar.

"Hello."

Kira turned abruptly to face the speaker. She was tall and slender, in a cherry-pink, figure-skimming gown that accentuated her curves. Beautiful pink hair cascaded over her shoulders and hung down her back. Gentle blue-grey eyes were twinkling at him. He froze, like a deer trapped in the headlights of an incoming vehicle.

_Shit._ He knew this woman and he knew they were in deep shit_._


	13. 12

**Chapter 12:**

Kira stared at the woman speaking to him. He knew her face. She had been among the snapshots in the file. _Lacus Clyne, the daughter of Siegel Clyne._

They were really in deep shit now.

She seemed not to notice his discomfort or alarm, and instead extended a hand, palm-up, invitingly. "Would you join me for this dance?" She smiled politely, exposing beautiful straight white teeth.

Kira was completely taken aback and he eyed the offered hand warily. "I-I'm honoured, Miss." His voice came out a little squeaky and he cleared his throat before speaking again. "I'm really honoured, but it'll be better for you to get someone else." _Better for you and me,_ he thought, but he held his tongue.

Lacus Clyne gave him a slight pout. She leaned close and the breath in Kira nearly stopped. "I sometimes ask guys out to dance. In fact, my date tonight? I asked him out. But being rejected on the dance floor would be a first." A sheepish smile lit up her lips. "See it as a favor?" She glanced over her shoulder and Kira followed her gaze. He saw a cluster of young women giggling and whispering as they avoided their eyes. Lacus Clyne returned her gaze to him, "I know it's sudden. But it was a dare, and I…"She broke off, giving that shy smile again.

Over her shoulder, Kira caught sight of Orga Sabnak glaring daggers at them. He had probably heard the entire conversation. Their eyes locked and he heard Orga's voice through his earpiece. _"Get rid of her, K. She's a threat to the mission. Now!"_

Immediately, Kira mouth opened but before he could utter a word of rejection, Lacus Clyne was giving him a pleading look. "Please," she whispered, "just one dance. Five minutes of your time, and I won't bug you again." Then her expression changed. "Oh," She took a step back and scanned the crowd around them. "Do you have a date with you tonight? I'm sorry, I should have thought of that. Are you worried she'll be angry? Maybe I could explain things to her first?"

Orga's voice burst through Kira's earpiece, so loud that he nearly winced. _"Don't let her catch sight of S! Do what she wants. Give her her freaking dance. Draw her attention away, K!"_

Kira moved forward and grasped Lacus Clyne's wrist. The pink-haired woman spun around, a look of surprise on her face. "Alright, but just one dance, okay?" He muttered, "I-I don't really dance."

The smile that lit up her face was so contagious that Kira found himself smiling in response to this beautiful woman who had caught him off guard. Then she tugged at him, pulling him onto the dance floor before he could change his mind. The live band, set on a low stage near the stairway, had started up again. A slow sarabande this time. Couples were streaming onto the floor. They wove their way through the crowd of twirling dancers, seeking a vacant spot. She was leading him, her fingers wrapped around his hand firmly.

Kira's bright eyes darted from face to face. He was uncomfortable and awkward amidst the crowd. Twice he almost snarled at the people who had crossed his way. His body was tense and tight, sensitive towards any sudden or unexplainable movements. Through his earpiece, he heard Orga instruct Shani to take over and watch Stellar's back. He didn't trust Shani, that bastard, but there was nothing he could do. Amidst the crowd on the dance floor, he had lost sight of Stellar.

He was startled out of his thoughts when he felt Lacus's gentle fingers grasp his right hand and position it behind her. She was slim and her waist fit comfortably in the arch of his arm. Up-close, she smelled of lavender, a soothing, light scent. Her full lips curved in a light smile. The fingers of her right hand slipped into his left and they began to move in time to the triple metre rhythm.

Kira made use of the opportunity to carefully study his unexpected dance partner. His dark eyes swept over her face, quick mind registering the details. She was a very attractive woman, with delicate features on skin as flawless and smooth as silk. She had a beautiful nose and luscious full lips to match. Her voluminous pink hair was pulled back in a high ponytail of cascading loose curls. She was watching him intently with bright grey eyes that held a youthful innocence. And there was something else in those eyes – a hint of familiarity which he couldn't quite decipher. He was ensnared by that closeness. It seemed almost possible that he had met her somewhere.

She cleared her throat and asked softly, "Are you new to this?" Kira stared at her, his dark eyes trained to betray no emotion, but the pause signified that he was surprised she was talking to him.

"New to what?" His voice was quiet and calm. A little wary and cautious. It fitted his dark, emotionless eyes.

"New to dancing." She smiled.

"Why do you say so?"

"You're tense. This is awkward and uncomfortable for you, isn't it?"

He didn't reply, just shrugged. It seemed he didn't like to talk much, or smile much.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, "if I put you in a spot."

"It's alright."

Again that silence, as they spun and twirled alongside the couples on the dance floor. Kira was aware that the rest of the team could hear their conversation and he could feel infuriated eyes boring into his back. Orga Sabnak. Through his earpiece, he could also hear Stellar, socializing and flirting her way through the crowd so that she could reach Siegel Clyne. And there he was, holding on to his daughter in his arms. Every minute holding Lacus Clyne was a chance for the mission to go awry.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

He was pulled back by the soft voice and the gentle hand on his shoulder.

"Nothing."

"You look troubled. It's not my request, is it?"

"No, it's not. I already told you. Don't worry about it."

Silence again.

"So… uhm… you're from?"

"DEX Enterprises." It was a company based in New York, registered under Dexter Smith. But Dexter Smith was Rau Le Creuset's subordinate, so DEX Enterprises actually belonged to Rau. But no one knew, and no one needed to know.

"Oh, drug testing?"

"Yup, that's what we do."

"I see. My father has told me so much about what your company does and the important role you play in the pharmaceutical industry. So it's very nice to meet you."

"It's very nice to be here."

As they moved across the dance floor, Kira could see Stellar smiling and shaking Siegel Clyne's hand. He could hear them conversing through his earpiece. And then she shook his hand again and picked her way through the crowd, moving away from him. Her voice was triumphant when it came through his earpiece, _"This is S reporting. I got it. Over."_

Then Orga Sabnak took over the line. _"Alright guys, time for the real work to begin. As soon as K is out, we move."_

As if on cue, the music began to slow and couples began streaming off the dance floor. Kira and Lacus came to a stop, standing close. "I have to go," Kira said, to which his dance partner merely smiled and nodded. "Thank you," she nodded towards the tittering group of young women, "I couldn't have got away so easily without your help."

"My pleasure. I hope you have an enjoyable evening."

He was already moving away when she called out to him. The band had started playing a different tune, something faster and more youthful, and people had begun crowding onto the dance floor again.

"I'm Lacus Clyne. What's your name?"

Kira paused. Experience had taught him to always give acquaintances his alias. Tonight, he was Henry Alexander. But those blue-grey eyes were watching him intently, as though they could bore through his flesh and see through his lies. And so, he didn't have a goddamn clue what possessed him when he opened his mouth and said, "I'm Kira. Kira Hibiki."


	14. 13

_Author's note: Yay, next chappie! Bit more action in this one._

**Chapter 12:**

"Why the hell did you give her your name?"

Kira ignored the question shot at him, resolutely working on removing the contents in his pockets and shrugging off his jacket.

A fist shot towards his face and he quickly deflected it, but the edge of Clotho's knuckles still clipped his jaw. "I'm asking you a question, asshole!" Clotho Buer snarled, the mop of fiery red hair covering his livid eyes made him look wilder and more uncontrollable. "Why the hell did you give her your freaking name?"

His anger roused, Kira turned infuriated eyes on him. "And why the hell does this concern you?" He hissed, "we're on a mission. We're on the move right now. So do what you need to do and keep your nose out of my business. " Then he glared at Orga Sabnak. "Keep your teammate under control or I'll do it!" Clotho's face darkened and he try to punch Kira again but Orga grasped his fist before it could land.

"That's enough, Clotho." Orga admonished coolly, his eyes glinting dangerously in the darkness. "Don't forget the mission. The rest, we can deal with later."

The red-haired man settled down, still seething with anger and glaring daggers at Kira. But Kira ignored it, as well as the concerned gaze Stellar was bestowing upon him and the strange look Auel was looking at him with.

They had slipped out of the Clyne Mansion into cold, frigid night air and were huddled against the outside wall, underneath the window of the study room on the second floor. The study was located in the left wing and overlooked a marble fountain and a thicket of bushes that provided them excellent cover as they stripped out of their tuxedoes and gowns.

Kira turned his jacket inside out to reveal a woolen material which seemed to absorb the darkness around him. He shrugged it on and zipped it up to hide the white shirt he was wearing. Then he did the same with his trousers. Beside him, Auel, Clotho and Orga were adorning themselves in their black garb. The women had a little more trouble with their silk gowns which tore on the branches of the bush. But they managed to tuck and fold their gowns neatly to reveal their black inner linings. Underneath, both Stellar and Orga's female companion were wearing dark stockings. Soon, they were all dressed in impenetrable black. Using black handkerchiefs, they hid their faces and covered their hair and donned their black gloves.

Stellar uncapped the tube of lipstick in her pocket and broke off the waxy substance to reveal a hollowed out casing. Aiming it at the ledge of the study window like a gun barrel, she shot a grappling hook from the aluminium tube, black wire uncoiling rapidly as the grappling hook sailed through the air. It landed and caught onto the window ledge with a soft ping. Stellar tugged hard on the wire once to ensure it was secure.

Upon Orga's signal, Kira began to scale the wall. It was only two stories but not an easy feat because the wall was polished smooth and his shoes failed to get a good grip. The night air was cold and dry and stung his face as he climbed. The grounds were silent except for the muffled sounds of music and conversation coming from within the house. Eventually, he made it to the window ledge and stopped short of it. The window ledge was projected outwards like a platform or a shelter. He glanced over it and scanned the room inside quickly, ready to duck if a bullet came whistling through the air towards him. The lights were off and the room was empty. Through the gap underneath the study door, he caught a glimpse of the light shifting in the corridor. There were people outside. Pacing to and fro. Guards.

He ducked down again and gave a soft whistle. His comrades were barely visible in the darkness and he was probably invisible to them too, but he heard the whoosh of something thrown and Stellar's gold pen and make-up compact case were tossed up at him one after another. He caught them easily, paused for a second to note any disturbances in the air. No snapping of twigs, or cocking of guns, or yelling. Assured, he pulled himself up onto the ledge to do his work.

The gold pen had a hidden spray which Kira used generously on the glass of the window. A web of red beams faded into view. _So, they had installed a laser trigger alarm system._ Kira frowned. _They thought that this would stop them? The police department was either underestimating them or… _Kira had an uneasy feeling about all this. He couldn't quite lay a finger on it, but it didn't seem to add up. The ease at which they could infiltrate the place, the lack of officers and patrol teams… He shrugged off it off as he worked on getting the make-up compact case lodged in an angle so that the mirror could deflect the laser beams. He cleared an area big enough for him and his teammates to crawl through. Then fishing for his bunch of keys which disguised his pick locking tools, he picked at the clasp holding the window shut.

"This is K reporting," he muttered as he heard the soft click of the lock unbolting itself, "I've got the laser beams redirected and the lock disengaged. All clear."

"_T, take over the security cameras,"_ Orga instructed, "_H, can you detect any alarm systems inside the study?"_

They waited in tensed silence for a response. Meanwhile, Kira remained crouched on the window ledge, his fingers holding the window sill steadily. Waiting for the signal.

Shani replied first. _"This is H reporting. There is an alarm system and motion detector connected to the window but I've shut them both down . No frequencies from hidden cameras or listening bugs. It's all clear."_

Kira took the time to study the room closely. It was a simple rectangular space, as drawn in the map. Furnished with heavy mahogany fixtures, one side of the room was flanked with shelves laden with books. On the other side was a heavy leather chair behind a large table. The floors were covered in Persian rugs. There was a security camera fixed above the study door and another located behind the leather chair. They swiveled on their hinges, running the length of the room. Kira watched them closely, and he saw the tiny green light on each camera blink and turn red. As if on cue, he heard Sting's voice in his ear, "_This is T reporting. All cameras are in lockdown. I've gained control over them. You have five minutes to get in and out. Over."_

"_K, open the window."_

The window sill lifted an inch when Kira pried his fingers underneath. He paused, waited to hear an ear-splitting ring and see dozens of officers charging into the room brandishing their weapons. But when he heard and saw neither, he inched the window sill open and hauled himself through it. He landed stealthily on the carpeted floor, crouched low. "This is K reporting. I'm in."

* * *

"So, any trouble?"

Athrun glanced around and smiled when Lacus handed him a glass of red wine.

"Any suspicious goings-on?" She grinned, leaning against the banister.

"Fortunately, or unfortunately, no," Athrun replied, taking a sip from his glass. He glanced down from the rooftop at the dark, inky grounds below. He spotted Team #1 pacing on the portico and weaving through the flowerbeds and bushes.

Behind him, the rooftop was crowded with guests. The pool was filled with swimmers and the deckchairs were all occupied. The cocktail bar at the corner was hidden from sight by the people streaming to and from it. On the other end, a DJ was blasting music from his speakers.

He wondered if this festive atmosphere would remain like that all night. Or if there would be a drastic change. He hoped not. Protecting the vial was important. But top priority was the safety of all these guests. _No causalities._ He had told his team. So easily said, but so difficult to achieve if a violent criminal was involved, or if a gunfight was going to take place.

_Damn._

"I'm going down to the backyard to look around," Athrun pushed himself off the banister and flashed a sheepish smile at Lacus. "I'm sorry. I'm not a really good date tonight-"

Lacus cut him off with a dismissive wave of her champagne glass. "Go on, big guy," she grinned, "go ahead and do what you need to do." Then she stood on her tiptoes and gave him a peck on the cheek, before pushing him off in the direction of the stairs encouragingly.

* * *

They found the safe box without much trouble. It was hidden in a small cupboard underneath the heavy mahogany table. Stellar pressed her ear to the steel door and began spinning the knob. Kira knelt beside her, holding the pen-torch so that she could see.

"Half a minute," Orga murmured, glancing at his watch.

* * *

The night bore with it a stale coldness that made Athrun pull his jacket around himself tighter. He nodded at one of the officers who strolled past him on patrol.

There was a little burst of static through his earpiece._ "Uhm, Chief?" _Athrun immediately picked up the tension and strain in the voice. He paused in his step and pressed a finger to his earpiece so that he could hear better. "What's wrong, Nicol?"

"_I think we have a problem with the security cameras._" Athrun felt his heartbeat quicken and the adrenalin pulsing through his blood.

"_And it appears that our alarm system has been bridged. The motion detectors are not picking up anything too." _

Athrun was already running across the garden before Nicol could finish what he was saying. _He wasn't going to let them escape this time._

* * *

"Hurry, Stellar," Kira urged. Sweat was beading on her forehead, trickling down her brow. Her eyebrows were knitted together in concentration. "Have you got it?" Clotho hissed from the doorway, throwing an errant glare over his shoulder. "Shut up, you idiot," Stellar threw back. Clotho's expression darkened with anger, but he clenched his jaw and held his tongue, returning his attention to the door. She spun the knob quickly clockwise, then anti-clockwise again. "Come on, come on," she muttered underneath her breath.

"Two minutes," Orga said coolly, raising two fingers. "You need to hurry."

Stellar ignored him, her deft fingers twisting the metal knob urgently. Then her expression changed and a hopefulness lit up her amber eyes. With a click, the metal safe door swung open. "Yes!" She punched a fist into the air, throwing a quick triumphant glance in Kira's direction.

Kira grinned back at her. "Well done, sweetheart." She shifted aside so that Kira could reach into the safe. It was empty save for a small metal briefcase. Kira rested it on his lap.

"Give me the fingerprint, Stellar."

Stellar had duplicated Siegel Clyne's fingerprint using a device she had hidden in her hand when they had shared a handshake. She removed the device now which looked like a tiny screen with buttons. Imprinted on it, was an unmistakable fingerprint. She connected the device to the biometric sensor of the suitcase and digits, numerals and digital jargon flashed across the screen. In less than a minute, there was a click and the latch sprung apart.

Nestled in the velvet interior of the case was a vial of pale yellow liquid. Kira lifted it up and shone the pen-torch at it so that a ray of light was reflected of it. Finally, they had got the target.

He was about to return it into its metal case when he felt the cold, hard metal of a gun barrel against the back of his skull. "Put it down."


	15. 14

**Chapter 14:**

Kira realized that he really, _really_ hated Orga Sabnak. There was nothing – absolutely nothing – likeable about this guy: the repulsive look on his face, the obnoxious cock of his head, the sly glint in his eye. How many times had he sworn to kill the guy but never got to doing it? As he stared up at the gun Orga Sabnak was pointing straight at him, Kira realized he had led a life without any regrets, except, maybe, this one.

"Put it back into the case, Kira," Orga repeated, his tone dangerous. He had lowered the black handkerchief covering his face and a mad grin was twisting his mouth.

Over his shoulder, Kira saw that both Stellar and Auel had also been held hostage. Orga's female teammate had an arm wrapped across Stellar's shoulder and a knife pressed to her throat. Close to the door, Auel was pinned to the wall by Clotho Buer's gun. A familiar rage began rising in Kira. It was like being devoured in flames, every vein in his body tingling and clamouring for his attention.

He opened his mouth slightly but before he could even say a word, Orga had read his mind and was already shaking his head, a rueful smile lighting up his face. "Don't even try," he smirked, "Sting has got problems of his own."

"What did you do to him?"

"Why don't you ask him yourself?" Orga gestured in the direction of Kira's ear, indicating for him to contact Sting. Kira hesitated, trying to size up his adversary. He knew Sting was staked out in the white limousine, surrounded by computer monitors and surveillance equipment. The only other member unaccountable for was Shani, and he had left the house earlier to station himself alongside Sting to provide technical assistance. Would they be confronting each other now? Yes, there was such a possibility. And were Orga Sabnak and his teammates crazy enough to risk it all? Unfortunately, the answer was a yes.

"T, we need back-up here," Kira muttered

The voice that came through his earpiece was strained and agitated. _"I'm a little busy, K. Right now, __I've got Shani Andras' __.__45 handgun jammed in my kidney.__"_

Before Kira could even reply, Auel tore suddenly out of Clotho's grasp and launched himself at Orga, striking blindly with his fist. But Clotho gained foot on him and clubbed him over the head with the butt of his gun. Auel went down into a heap on the carpet and Clotho stood over him grinning, with his gun aimed at Auel's head.

"You son of a bitch," Kira breathed.

Orga Sabnak just laughed, as though reveling in a compliment. "You have no idea how long I've been dreaming of doing this," he hissed. "Previously, it was professional jealousy. But now, I don't need to come up with some plausible excuse to pacify Rau. After how you revealed your name to Lacus Clyne, I can just tell Rau that I killed you to remove a potential threat."

"Pull that trigger and we're all going down, Orga," Kira snarled. "We haven't got much time left. You're wasting it by killing us. When the police comes charging in, none of us are getting out alive."

Orga made a dismissive gesture with his gun before aiming it back at Kira. "Maybe you can't," he smirked, "but we can."

* * *

"Team #4, can you hear me?" Athrun yelled into the microphone on his collar. There was no reply, only a buzz of static.

"Team #4!" He shouted, "Team #3? Team #2?" No reply. Athrun sped across the garden, leaping over a flowerbed. He had caught the attention of Team #1, which was patrolling the garden and they were too heading for the house. But something – or someone – had disrupted the line of communication between the teams and he couldn't contact any of the teams within the house.

_Shit, shit, shit._ Athrun tore through a bush, ignoring the branches that snagged and tore his trousers. _Son of a bitch!_

* * *

Kira glanced at his trapped teammates. Auel was temporarily out of action. Sting was most definitely out. He could try kicking Orga's legs out from under him, since he was still crouched low with the vial and its briefcase in his lap. But he could see that Orga did not have a silencer on his gun. It would probably have made the gun too bulky to smuggle into the house. So if the gun accidentally went off when Orga fell, chaos would ensue. The only one left with a little bit more chance was Stellar. If she threw her head upwards – hard - and clipped the woman under her chin, the woman would go out like a light. Kira turned his gaze on Stellar and saw her amber eyes brighten with understanding.

He saw her bend her knees slightly, building up the tension in her thighs. And then all of a sudden, the door of the study creaked open and a pillar of light flooded into the room.

"What the hell-" A startled voice arrested their attention. Framed in the doorway was a uniformed officer. He froze for just a second, and was already yelling into the hidden microphone at his collar when Clotho descended upon him. He yelped and brandished his gun, trying to get an aim, but Clotho merely dodged and came up behind him, then slit his throat with a knife. Blood sprayed across the wall as the blade severed his jugular artery and he fell to the ground on his front.

"Shit," Orga wrinkled his nose. He glared at the collapsed body and threw a disgusted glance at Clotho, who was busy wiping his knife on the shirt of the dead officer. "You couldn't have done a cleaner job?"

Clotho merely grinned.

"His friends should be coming soon," Orga smiled, turning back to Kira, "time for us to be on our way. But first, let's finish you off."

He flicked off the safety of the gun and the finger on the trigger began its descent. And that was when all hell broke loose.

Kira watched as Orga Sabnak's body flew and slammed into the opposite shelf. A silver-haired man in a tuxedo had thrown himself at Orga and they both fell in a spitting, kicking heap. Books rained down on their writhing bodies.

And right on schedule, Sting's voice burst through their earpieces. _"I've got the car waiting outside the gate. Get down to the main entrance!"_

Galvanised into action, Auel launched himself at Clotho and they wrestled across the room. Stellar and the woman were tackling each other on the ground. Both fights ended quickly as Clotho and the woman were eager to assist their leader and at the first opportunity, abandoned the fight and dove into the mess of struggling limbs. Kira could hear both Orga and the silver-haired man yelling, but he didn't wait to see who won. He grasped the vial, shoved it into the pocket inside his black garments and ran for the exit. He snagged Stellar's wrist and hauled Auel by the waist and dragged his teammates out into the corridor.

The corridor was empty but it wouldn't be for long. There were feet thundering overhead as officers came running along the corridor, up and down the stairs. "What do we do now?" Stellar gasped, watching Kira's face anxiously.

Then they heard Shani Andras' voice, _"Orga, I've got the van out front. Get out now!"_ Back in the study, there was a loud crash and they turned just in time to see Orga, Clotho and their female companion hurling themselves out of the glass window.

"What do we do?" Stellar repeated. Kira glanced down at the crowd of guests on the first floor. Only a few had raised their heads to glance up in alarm at the commotion. Most of them were still mingling and socializing. Then he caught sight of the gun in Auel's hand. He recognized it. Clotho's gun. Auel must have wrestled it from him. "Shoot," He snapped at Auel and pointed down at the crowd. Auel immediately fired a bullet into the crowd below. BANG! There were screams, and the guests sank to their knees. The music stopped and a frightening silence descended as they lay prone on the ground, shielding their heads and covering their ears. No one moved. Even the footsteps on the upper floor appeared to pause for a second.

Auel fired a triple-tap into the crowd below. BANG, BANG, BANG! That got them moving as screams permeated the air and the swarm below dissolved into chaos.

"Move!" Kira yelled at his team and they scrambled for the stairs. They descended into the screaming, panicking crowd and were quickly borne towards the exit as people dove for the doors, pushing and stumbling over each other. Kira struggled to retain his footing as the crowd surged for the exit. He was shoved into the cocktail table and it overturned with a resounding crash. He heard shouting over the chaos and saw uniformed officers stream down the stairs, trying, but failing, to control the crowd.

"Kira!" A hand found its way into his and he spun around to see Stellar, panting and red-faced. Sweat and tears poured down her face, smudging her make-up. Her hair was escaping its updo in wild strands. There was a wild, feral panic on her face. "Move!" He shouted, pulling her after him.

Thrice, their sweaty hands nearly separated as they tore through the crowd, Kira pushing and heaving with his shoulders against the people in his way. Stellar struggled to catch up. "What about Auel?" She was crying as Kira dragged her along.

"He knows where he should go!" He shot back, not stopping for a second. He was aware of a dash of fear inside him, and he hoped that Auel really did know where to go. It was impossible to spot or identify anyone amidst the terrified horde of guests.

They burst out of the main doors of the Clyne Mansion as the crowd dispersed in all directions, free from the bottleneck at the exit. Kira flew down the grand staircase, Stellar hot on his heels. There was utter chaos at the roundabout. Cars jammed, horns were blaring, tyres screeched on the asphalt. The police had just begun setting up a barrier to contain the crowd, but cars sped past it. People streamed past the officers as though they didn't exist, paying no heed to them.

And parked at the exit of the roundabout was the white limo.

Kira put on a burst of speed, tugging hard at Stellar as he dashed towards the car. The door flew open when they approached and Auel gestured wildly from the back seat. "Hurry up!" He yelled. Sting was already hitting the accelerator as they neared the door and the limo was moving. They flung themselves through the open door and the limo took off with a wild screeching of tyres. They tore past the police barrier and joined the fast escaping line of cars headed for the main road.


	16. 15

**Chapter 15:**

Athrun ducked under the yellow crime scene tape that stretched across the entrance of the study. The crime scene technicians were already at work and the room was in an utter mess. Glass was strewn across the carpeted floor, the window now a gaping hole bordered with shards. A cold, face-numbing wind was blowing into the study. Books lined the floor in disarray and there was a splatter of blood covering the pages of an open book. The body was lying close to the heavy mahogany desk. Face-down.

Zachary Jones. Thirty-one years old. Twelve years in the service, three of which were in his department. A father of two – an eight year old boy and a five year old girl. Athrun imagined telling Zachary's wife that her husband wouldn't be coming home for breakfast. Or lunch. Or ever. He watched the crime scene photographer snap photographs of Zachary's slit throat and turned away so that he didn't need to look into the wild, frightened eyes of his officer.

Athrun surveyed the crime scene and spotted a brunette with shoulder-length brown hair bent over a dark stain on the carpet. "Miriallia," he called in greeting as he approached the crime scene investigator. Miriallia Haw glanced up and gave him a brief smile before turning back to her work. She was swabbing the blood soaked rug with a cotton bud which she carefully placed and sealed in a bag. "Rough night?" She said simply.

Athrun didn't reply. He had an officer dead and another in serious condition. He had six injured guests and a media circus congregated outside the Clyne Mansion. 'Rough night' was an underestimation. "Just tell me what we've got."

Miriallia stood up and handed the evidence bag to her assistant, then shrugged back at Athrun. "Three blood stains." She pointed at an arc of blood on the wall. "That's number one: an arterial spurting pattern. From the victim." She gestured at Zachary Jones' body. "Knife across the throat - severed jugular artery." At the sight of Athrun's raised eyebrows, she smiled and explained. "There are two blood vessels in the throat – the jugular artery, which leads _from_ the heart and the jugular vein which leads _to_ the heart. When the jugular artery is cut, the pumping of the heart causes blood to escape in spurts, hence the pattern."

Athrun nodded to indicate his understanding. "What about the blood on the books?" He jerked his head towards the shelves and its mess of papers.

"That's number two." Miriallia stepped around the body and crouched down beside the pile. She lifted a blood-stained page with her gloved hand. "Your people found Yzak Joule lying here unconscious. This is likely to be your agent's blood. But we're taking a sample back to the lab and we'll be able to give you a confirmation soon."

Then she stood up again and strolled over to the dark stain she had been analyzing when Athrun spotted her. "This is number three and the one that can't be accounted for." She put her hands on her hips and frowned at it, deep in thought. "If we're lucky," she gave Athrun a sideward glance. There was a perceptive glimmer in her eyes. "This blood could belong to one of the criminals. In which case, I may be able to give you the identity of the infiltrator."

* * *

Auel was bleeding from his forehead, a heavy trickle of blood that ran into his eye continuously. Stellar had torn the hem of her gown to use as a bandage, but it was now soaked in the thick red liquid. "The son of a bitch," Auel hissed as Kira held the makeshift bandage to his brow so that Stellar could rip off another corner off her dress.

"Shut your mouth and lie still," Kira said in reply and his teammate settled back quietly against the leather seat, his head against the window.

Kira scooted over and allowed Stellar to clamber over him to tend to their injured companion. He leaned forward into the empty space between the front seats and pointed at a fork in the road. "Pull over there, Sting."

The green-haired driver glanced at him in bewilderment. He was sporting a split lip and a broken nose and blood was gushing down his front, into his mouth and staining his shirt. "Pull over, Sting," Kira repeated, "let me drive. You're disoriented and dazed."

"I'll live," Sting retorted. His voice was slurred and sounded nasal, both from the blood and the broken nose.

"I never doubted that," Kira said mildly, "but I don't want to risk having an accident when police all over the country are looking for us."

Sting obeyed without further complaints and they ended up in a deserted street, one wheel on the kerb as the white limo jammed to an unsteady halt. Kira got out and was just in time to catch Sting as he tottered out of the driver's seat. He guided the injured man into the backseat where Stellar immediately tried to stem his bleeding. Then Kira slid into the driver's seat, shoved the gear into drive and tore down the street with screeching tires, driving as fast as he dared to without rousing the attention of any police officers they might meet on the way.

* * *

Athrun tried not to interrupt the work of the crime scene investigators as he strolled around the perimeters of the room. There were investigators picking through the broken glass and fingerprint analysts dusting the window sill. Miriallia Haw was directing her technicians to disassemble and remove the security cameras. Investigators were crawling under the desk and inspecting the metal safe, with its door wide open. The medical examiner was arranging for the body to be transported to the lab. When he passed by the gaping hole that the window had become, he noticed investigators scouring the grounds with torches. Athrun had sent Lunamaria and Nicol to the Jones' house to give Zachary's wife the devastating news. He would go down personally when dawn broke to offer his condolences.

Keeping an eye on the goings-on of the crime scene investigation, Athrun fished for his phone and dialed Dearka's number. It rang twice before Dearka picked up. "How's Yzak?"

Dearka replied in hushed tones. "He's in the ER right now. We're going to have to wait till the doctor's out to know how he's doing."

"Keep me posted."

"Got it, chief."

* * *

Kira turned out from the highway into a side road, leaving the heavy traffic behind, and continued driving. They were now on private property and there was no traffic police to look out for. The road was empty of all cars and he sped down the driveway like a madman. The two-way road had been laid through a forest and was boxed in on both sides by trees. For twenty minutes, they drove past looming trees and dim streetlights before they caught sight of the building in the distance.

Le Creuset Corporation.

A giant made of stainless steel and glass, it overlooked the forest and the driveway that wove through it. As they neared the building, a metal gate loomed into view and Kira slammed his foot onto the brake. The limo skidded to a halt inches before the gate. A security camera swiveled around on its hinges and stopped, its lens focused on Kira. A woman's voice emitted from a speaker. "Please state your identification number."

Kira leaned his head out of the open window, "K-022378"

After a minute, the gates were buzzed open. They met two more similar barriers and at the third, a group of security guards glanced in through the wound-down windows and hurriedly waved them through.

Kira guided the limo around the building and stopped at a well-camouflaged steel door in the back. The door burst open and men in uniform and white lab coats came running towards them. Kira left the engine idling and pulled Auel from the backseat. Auel had drifted into unconsciousness towards the end of their journey and was immediately conveyed onto a stretcher and borne away into the midst of the building.

A man in a lab coat nodded pointedly at Kira, "Rau wants to see you."

Kira glanced over at the remainder of his team. Sting appeared a little glazed over and his face looked terrible, but the bleeding had slowed. "I can make it," he grinned reassuringly.

Led by the scientist, they entered the building and strolled briskly through white sterile corridors. Soft white light shone overhead and reflected on the white polished marble floor. They headed for the lift lobby and crammed into a lift – the scientist, the three of them and two other guards in uniform. The lift buttons showed that the Le Creuset Corporation had only thirty floors with no basements, but the scientist typed in a number on a keypad and the lift began to descend.

The ride took an entire minute as they descended deep into the ground. When the lift doors opened, they were in an underground facility, half a mile under the Le Creuset Corporation. They stepped out into a dimly lit corridor with rough cemented walls and floors. Harsh fluorescent lighting shone down on them and a heavy antiseptic smell hung in the air. The scientist walked them through the maze of corridors, past iron doors that led into various labs.

He stopped outside a wooden door and knocked twice. "Come in," a muffled voice came from within.

The scientist swung the door open on its hinges. "Sir, Kira's team has returned to base," he informed.

Rau Le Creuset was seated behind his desk, both his feet propped up on its surface. He had a finger on his globe and he was spinning it. Clockwise, and then anti-clockwise. Repeatedly. He beckoned to Kira and his teammates with his other hand, then signaled for the door to be closed. When they were alone, his expression hardened. The silver mask hid his eyes but his mouth was set in a thin line. "Where's Orga's team?"

"We don't know."

"Don't know?"

"The police showed up and we escaped separately."

Silence fell. Rau's expression looked murderous. "How did that happen?"

"We had five minutes in and out," Kira replied coldly, his voice and eyes void of emotion, "Orga and his team turned on us. They wasted the time and the police caught up to us."

The crash shook the walls as Rau swept the globe off his desk. It collided into the wall and shattered, raining to the ground in pieces.

"Where's the rest of your team?"

"Auel was injured. He's being attended to."

"And Orga's team? No news at all?"

"No."

"Did you leave any clues behind?"

"No."

Rau sank his fist into his desk. "The idiot!" He snarled. He turned furious eyes onto Kira. "And the vial? Where is it?"

Kira reached into his jacket and removed the little glass bottle of yellow liquid. "We got it."

_Author's note: There! Two chapters in a row! Don't forget to review, review, review! Bad comments, good comments, all accepted. If you spot any mistakes, please feel free to point them out too! (I just realized that in chapter 8, during the confrontation between Shani and Kira, it should have been a broken nose, not a blackened eye!)_


	17. 16

_Author's note: Okay, next chapter hot from the oven! To Seiba Artoria, very glad you like the story. There should be more romance on the way, I think… *wink* To moi, I haven't done much research actually. I got most of my material from reading thrillers (Let me recommend an author to everyone: Lee Child. He's the most awesome thriller / crime writer. I am so addicted to his books and one of them has been adapted into a film, with Tom Cruise cast as the main character. It'll be in cinemas in December. That is just icing on the cake!) and lastly to Shad999, it's a pain to have cliffhangers, I agree, but… hope you'll put up with my cliffhangers and see what'll happen next. I'll make it up to you by trying to get the subsequent chapters out faster! That's a promise!_

_Anyway, this chapter is a bit of a break from all the action. Oh god, I need the break, and I think all the characters and readers do too!_

**Chapter 16:**

She had been small and slim. Her waist had fit perfectly in the arch of his arm and he had felt the cool silk flowing over her body as they moved in perfect beat.

Kira lifted his hand. He could just make out the shape of his fingers in the glow from his bedside lamp. He turned his hand, rotating his wrist and clenched his fist, his fingers curled in. He saw his knuckle bones roll under his pale skin and the blue-green veins standing out in stark relief.

A murderer's hand. He could have crushed that woman's waist with his arm. It was what he was made for.

But he had been so gentle with her.

"_I'm Lacus Clyne. What's your name?"_

"_I'm Kira. Kira Hibiki."_

He rolled over onto his side, shut his eyes and wrapped the pillow around his head. What the hell was wrong with him? He had gone right ahead and told her his name. He had given his name to the daughter of the man his boss hated to the core, and probably wanted to kill. _Shit!_ He was a downright stupid idiot!

But he had never made such a mistake before. He had always been careful, even paranoid, around people. What the hell happened? Kira opened his eyes and gazed into the semi-darkness. An image of Lacus Clyne floated into his mind.

Because she had approached him first? No, that didn't make sense. Why would he go ahead and reveal his name just because a woman had come up to him? He met lots of women – both his neighbours were women, women noticed and approached him when he ate at Flay's, women tried to pick him up at the bar where Stellar worked. But he had never given them his freaking name!

Besides, Lacus Clyne was a different sort of woman. He recalled those blue-grey eyes looking at him, as if she could see right through. That strange, unexplainable sense of familiarity. Like they had met before. But Kira had a good memory – he could remember the faces of all the people he met, and he was very sure he had never met her before. So why?

A tortured groan escaped his lips before he could reign it back in and he covered his face with his pillow. There was something seriously wrong with him.

* * *

Athrun heard Yzak's voice before he saw the silver-haired man. He rounded the bend and found himself crushed against the wall as Yzak Joule barreled straight into him. "What the hell is wrong with you? Are you blind?" Yzak Joule shoved him hard and screamed into his face, then rounded on the flurry of doctors, nurses and a distraught Dearka who were following him, "get out of my way or I swear I'll kill you!"

"Whoa there," Athrun said calmly, slightly winded from the collision, "calm down, Yzak."

The silver-haired man whirled around and paused in his tirade, as if he had only just realized that Athrun was there. A bandage covered the right side of his face but the blood that had seeped through the white dressing showed the cut that he had received. It had narrowly missed his right eye.

"What the fuck are you staring at?" He yelled.

"You need to calm down," Athrun raised his hands in a placating gesture. "You haven't been discharged. Where are you going?"

"It's none of your business," Yzak was bristling with anger, his fists clenched at his side. "You're the boss at work, but you're not the boss of my life, Athrun Zala." He spat out Athrun's name as if it was something digusting.

"I know and I'm not trying to run your life, Yzak. But you're not fit to be anywhere in your condition. I've talked to AC Ramius and she's agreed to give you as much leave as you need, so-"

Yzak Joule blew up. He shoved Athrun into the wall, his fists full of Athrun's collar. "Don't you dare!" He yelled, "don't you dare remove me from the team! This injury isn't going to cripple me!" The doctors and nurses tried to separate them. Dearka had his arms wrapped around Yzak's chest and he was tugging hard at the infuriated young man.

"I am NOT pulling you off the team!" Athrun yelled back, trying to fend off the onslaught. "when you're discharged, you're welcome back to the team!"

Yzak paused in the midst of his attack, then let go, shoving Athrun back into the wall again before backing away. Athrun smoothed down the front of his jacket. "Listen, I'm not getting rid of you," he snapped at the seething man glaring at him, "I wouldn't even dare to entertain such a thought. The more trouble you make, the less likely the doctors are going to discharge you. So simmer down!"

Yzak Joule glowered at his chief, then abruptly turned on his heel. "Get out of my way!" He elbowed Dearka aside and stalked back towards his ward. Dearka gave Athrun a reassuring nod that he would handle it, then hastened quickly after his silver-haired mate.

Athrun watched them disappear into the ward before he slammed his fist into the wall. He ignored the alarmed glances cast in his direction as nurses, doctors and patients paused in their activities to look at him.

That was the last straw. Yzak Joule was family. _Damn! _Everyone in his department, in the police force was family. And now, he had one family member dead and one injured. He was going to get the bastards that did it.

* * *

_It was the same little girl. With shoulder-length blonde hair. _

_She ran towards him and wrapped both arms around his legs, gazing up at him with sweet hazel eyes. He crouched down so that he was level to the girl and put his hands on her shoulders. "Who are you?" He whispered. The little girl stared at him. She smiled, a beautiful smile with dimples in her cheeks. _

"_Who are you?" He repeated, shaking her slightly. She opened her mouth and her lips formed a word, but there was no sound. _

"_What?" He said. "I can't hear you."_

_She said the same word, her lips forming the same shape. But he couldn't pick it out, couldn't hear anything. "I can't hear you," he whispered back, his voice breaking with sorrow and longing. _

_Then her hazel eyes widened with fear. She pointed over his shoulder, opened her mouth and screamed a soundless scream. Before he could turn around, a hand wrapped itself around his face, covering his mouth. An arm was thrown around his throat and held him in a stranglehold. He struggled but couldn't break free of the strong hands and he could do nothing but let those arms drag him into darkness. The last thing he saw was the little girl running towards him, her hands outstretched._

Kira opened his eyes and found himself in his own bed, staring up at the ceiling of his room. He laid still for a second, then slowly sat up, and realized that his face was drenched with tears.

* * *

The crime scene lab was located on the twentieth floor of the Central Police Headquarters. Athrun rode the lift up to the twentieth storey and the doors opened onto a dimly lit corridor. It was still early, not yet 6 a.m. and work hadn't yet begun. The corridor was lined on both sides by labs and most of them were dark and empty. He headed for the last one which had its light on and found Miriallia Haw camped in front of a monitor.

"What have you got for me?"

"Well, a very good morning to you too, Athrun," Miriallia replied dryly.

Athrun threw himself down on an empty chair and looked at her expectantly.

"Let me tell you first that I've been working up all night. First, you have your people pull me from my bed at midnight to the crime scene. Then you demand that I give you a report within twenty-four hours. And I've been holed up in this lab running tests on that blood sample for the past five hours. You owe me big time, Athrun Zala."

"Yes, and I'll remember it. Would you prefer coffee or tea?"

"Coffee. And one cup of coffee's not enough to pay back, Detective Zala."

"Okay. Eggs and sausages or salad?"

"Salad."

"Right, I'll get Meyrin to bring it in. Now what have you got for me?"

"Lucky you. I've got no personal assistant to get me my daily breakfast." Miriallia gave an exaggerated sigh.

"I can make Meyrin available to you if you need her. Now, will you _please_ tell me what you've got?"

Miriallia laughed and turned from the monitor to look at a distraught Athrun.

"Alright, let me put you out of your misery." She tossed a manila file into Athrun's lap. Athrun opened the file and browsed through its contents.

"I've got the DNA of the guy, so all you need to do is run it through the system and see if you get a match," Miriallia said. Then she frowned and her expression became more serious. "But that's just the tip of the iceberg. Check out the third page."

Athrun did as Miriallia asked and gazed down at a page full of chemical symbols and jargon. He raised an eyebrow at her.

The crime scene investigator smiled grimly, "I need a bit more time to analyse this, but you should know that there's trace of an unknown chemical in the guy's blood."

_Author's note: Yep, that's all for this chapter. Don't forget to review, review, review!_


	18. 17

_Author's note: Okay, warning: this chapter is seriously full of angst! I don't think I've ever written such an angsty piece. I don't know how it happened, but it just did… Oh, and to all my reviewers, thanks loads and do keep reading. (To moi, yes, you're quite right. That's what Athrun would do. The realisation should be in the next chapter, or the next next, I think :) )_

**Chapter 16:**

The creamy vanilla ice-cream melted on his tongue, leaving behind its sweet, milky kiss. He savoured it slowly, taking his time, before he sliced a perfect square of the waffle and speared it with his fork.

"Here's your coffee," Flay smiled. She slipped into the seat opposite him.

"Thank you," Kira raised the cup appreciatively and took a sip. No milk, sugar or cream. Just the way he liked it. The sweetness of the ice-cream accentuated the bitterness of the coffee, and when he slipped another spoonful of vanilla ice-cream into his mouth, the bitterness of the coffee made the sweetness of the ice-cream even sweeter.

Kira glanced up when he heard soft laughter. "You're a man of extremes, aren't you?" Flay smiled, "I've never seen a guy who drinks his coffee black, but enjoys our waffle-and-ice-cream breakfast every morning." Kira merely shrugged.

He ate on in silence, Flay watching him with her chin propped up on her hands. It was a routine they had. Kira always had waffles and ice-cream for breakfast, plus freshly brewed coffee. If he was around for lunch, he would have one of their triple-layered burgers, with pie for dessert and another cup of coffee. And if he happened to pop in for dinner, which was rare, he would order fried chicken which came with a mess of fries, another slab of pie and coffee. Kira didn't like to talk, and Flay acknowledged that fact. So they didn't have many conversations, but they shared an understanding.

Five minutes later, Kira heard Flay clear her throat. "Kira, what exactly do you do for a living?"

He glanced up, surprised, but Flay continued to look intently at him as she pressed on, "What's your occupation?"

Kira shrugged, "I've told you." He took another sip of his coffee.

"Well, 'doing dangerous stuff' isn't the answer I'm looking for. What exactly is your job? What kind of 'dangerous stuff' do you do?" Flay leaned across the table, her clear grey eyes pinning him back into his seat.

_Well, I'm an assassin and a contract killer. I infiltrate, I steal and I kill. _

He was very sure that Flay wasn't looking for that answer either.

"Why the sudden interest in my job?" He said, pushing around a square of waffle with his fork so that it soaked up the melted pool on his plate. Flay cocked her head, red hair spilling over her shoulder, and pursed her lips. Her eyebrows were knitted together in a frown. Then she said hesitatingly, "because you're always getting hurt, and you always have that unhappy look."

Kira didn't expect that answer. He stared back at her, unsure of what to say, and ended up retorting lamely, "I'm not unhappy. What makes you think so?"

This time, it was Flay's turn to shrug. She fiddled with the hem of her apron, chewing her bottom lip. "Well," she scowled a little, "sometimes, I see you with a frustrated expression. Other times, you're cold and distant. And-" She paused and glanced up at him. A smile graced her lips, but it was a sympathetic smile, "you have a pair of very beautiful eyes, Kira, but there's always this... loneliness in them. It's like you're waiting for something, longing for something."

Well, that was unexpected. Kira bent his head to continue eating, and to avoid Flay's eyes.

After a pregnant pause, in which Kira desperately hoped that Flay would drop the subject, he heard her sigh. "It's fine if you don't want to tell me." He glanced up from his waffles and ice-cream. The usual familiar smile had returned to Flay's face, "Just know that if you ever need help, or if you're looking for someone to talk to, we'll be around." She gestured at herself, then to the back of the kitchen where Sai was working. Sai was her boyfriend, and the two of them ran the place together. Flay had once told Kira that they were planning to raise enough money to get married and have a family. _But that'll be in many years to come, _Flay had smiled grimly.

"So," Flay clasped her hands together, grinning, "Sai and I were thinking of having a tasting session. Sai's got a couple of new ideas for the menu. Why don't you join us?"

"No, I wouldn't be the right choice. I'm not much of a food critic. You should-"

"Come on, Kira. It's just like a night of fun, that's all. You boys could hang out and catch the game on the television while you're at it. I've got girlfriends coming over to help-"

_Catch the game? _Kira almost laughed. _Yeah, most guys lounged around at night, watching the game. That was what the usual guys in a neighbourhood like that did. But most nights, he was jumping out of helicopters, or attending the party of some rich guy, or scaling walls of private compounds, or shooting the brains out of Rau's unlucky victim. He didn't lie on the sofa to watch the game, like the other guys in the neighbourhood._

Flay was still chattering, her hands gesturing excitedly, when Kira spotted the flash of blonde hair through the window of the diner. He stared across the vacant carpark and saw Stellar, her face half hidden in the shadows.

"-so, we'll have a wonderful time. And it'll take your mind off things, Kira. It'll do all of us good. What do you say?" Flay turned hopeful eyes on him and Kira tore his gaze away from the window.

"When's the tasting session?" He said, pushing aside his now empty plate and downing the rest of his coffee.

"Friday night. Here, at the diner." The sparkle in Flay's eyes was full of excitement and hope.

"I'll try to be there. No promises, Flay. But I'll try." He slid out of his chair, fishing for his wallet, already heading for the door.

"That's all we're asking for, Kira," Flay smiled reassuringly as she stood up and walked him to the door. She refused the bill he handed her but that was part of their routine too. Kira always tried to pay, and Flay and Sai always tried to refuse, but Kira would eventually find a way to get it to them. This time, he slid it surreptitiously under the rag at the counter. Then he gave Flay a friendly kiss on the cheek and Sai a quick wave when her boyfriend popped his head around the kitchen door, before setting off across the vacant carpark towards Stellar.

* * *

"Do you have any idea how many guests there were at the party?" Lunamaria exclaimed incredulously. Athrun ignored her, "I also want the statements of all the crew – the waiters, the waitresses, the cooks, the butler, the gardeners and the cleaners. And don't forget the poolside DJ."

Meyrin glanced up from the pad she was busy scribbling on, "that's nearly two hundred people."

"Yes, I know," Athrun replied coolly, "and I want all of them. I don't care how many detectives or officers you mobilize. Get it done."

His subordinates exchanged a look of disbelief, and Luna heaved a sigh before nodding. "Will do, Chief."

Athrun turned to Nicol. "Any leads on the blood sample?"

Nicol frowned. "I'm still running the DNA through the system. The bad news is that I don't have a match yet. The good news is that this guy doesn't have a criminal record, so that narrows down our search. By a little." He raised his hand, with his thumb and forefinger about a millimeter apart, just to show how little progress they were making.

"Keep trying," Athrun said tersely.

He dismissed his agents with a nod and reached for the phone on his desk. Miriallia Haw picked up the phone after three rings.

"Any leads on the chemical trace?"

Miriallia sounded harassed when she replied. "No, Athrun. I'm still analyzing its chemical makeup. You've got to give me more time."

"We don't have time, Miriallia," Athrun snapped, "it won't be long before they realize the drug in that vial is fake. They will strike again soon."

* * *

Kira heard the crack of bone splintering when he thrust his fist forward and it connected with his adversary's jaw. The man was thrown backwards by the blow and he slumped down to the concrete ground, out cold. Kira straightened to his full height and stared down at the fallen man. His amethyst eyes were cold and dark, devoid of emotions. Sweat trickled down his brow in rivulets. He brushed the back of his hand over his mouth and saw blood. A split lip.

Two men approached warily and dragged their fallen comrade away.

Kira turned to glare at the men lined behind him. There were six of them, standing at attention against the grey cemented wall. Tall and muscled. Just staring at him with a kind of respect and hatred at the same time. Human punching bags, he thought bitterly.

Kira was in a concrete cell. No windows. Only one door leading out to the rest of the underground facility. No way was anyone going to walk out of that door. You had to be dragged, or carried – that was the only way out of that cell.

His eyes fell on the one standing at the end of the line. He was the tallest. Hard muscles moved under dark tanned skin and black hair in a buzz cut. His chest was large and brawny underneath the black sweat-shirt he wore. He looked like a bouncer at a raucous pub, maybe Stellar's club. Kira smirked. Clearly a challenge had presented itself. He crooked his finger at his chosen opponent and beckoned him forward.

The bouncer just stared at him and pointed at himself unbelievably. Kira nodded and gestured towards him again.

He stepped forward hesitantly and Kira sank his fist right into the bouncer's face. The sudden strike sent the big man down onto his knees and he didn't see the roundhouse kick. He went sprawling onto the hard concrete when Kira swung his leg and caught him in the side of the head.

Surprise had made him slow in responding. Dumb even, Kira mused to himself, shoving his elbow into the guy's face. Plain stupid. He directed his disgust, hatred and anger into well-aimed punches and kicks. Until he was spent and crouched down beside the fallen man, panting heavily. The bouncer was sprawled across the floor, an arm thrown up to protect his face. Blood was trickling from his lips and brow, his hair matted by sweat and caked with blood.

All of a sudden, he pounced, retaliating with a sharp elbow strike to Kira's ribs. It hit its mark and Kira stumbled back, doubling over in pain. Blind agony shot through his side. His opponent sensed an opening and began to attack with ferocity, kicking and punching vigorously.

It was all Kira could do to keep his face from being smashed in. His muscles were burning. Exhaustion slowed him down. He couldn't strike back, he couldn't even defend himself.

Kira found himself trapped in a corner with the bouncer advancing on him quickly. A punch in the stomach had him doubled over. "Not so tough huh, little boy?" The bouncer breathed heavily, "You think you can throw us around, beat us senseless like that? You're just some genetically-modified hybrid!" He brought his knee hard into Kira's face and Kira heard a crunch. Then he was dropped and he fell painfully onto the ground. His entire body screamed from fatigue and agony. There was a throbbing pain in his nose. Probably a nasal fracture.

A kick to Kira's head left him dazed and confused.

"You little son of a bitch," the bouncer stood over him, leering. "If you were not Rau's best project, you think you could come and go as you liked? You're just some kind of mutant freak, you know? Some kind of pet that Rau likes keeping by his side."

Kira felt it then - that rush of adrenalin and fury that surged through his blood and made his body tingle with anticipation… and bloodlust. The pain and throbbing faded and in an instant, he was up again. Blood trickled steadily from his nose and into his mouth, but that only made him even hungrier. His amethyst eyes were dark, so dark that they had almost turned black. A lifetime of bitterness and anger threw forth. He leapt forward, swinging for the man's head and caught him in the ear. The man stumbled back, his eyes glazing over. Kira crouched low and swept him off his feet with a swift kick. He crashed heavily onto the ground and lay there, winded.

And exposed.

Kira began his assault. He flung himself onto the prone man and jabbed his elbow hard into the beefy face. Again and again. Pummeling him. Wiping that obnoxious grin off his annoying face.

Until exhaustion began to take its toll on him and he couldn't lift his arms anymore. He sat, straddling the fallen man, panting heavily. Despite the fatigue, he felt more energetic than ever. More alive than ever.

Gradually, he willed his breathing to slow and became aware of a shocked silence that had engulfed the room. He whipped his head around and saw the rest of the men eyeing him with wary and terrified eyes.

And Kira laughed. He stood up, stepped over the body of his adversary and laughed so hard that tears ran down his cheeks to mingle with the sweat and blood on his face.

"W-What's so funny? You think killing him is a joke?" A man said, staring at him with wide eyes. He backed away when Kira took a step towards him, but Kira kept going, forcing him towards the wall until his face was only inches away from Kira's.

"You're a monster," the man gasped. His eyes were wide and panicky.

"Yes," Kira laughed, his voice shaking with mirth as the tears, sweat and blood streamed down his face, "You're right. I am a monster."

_Author's note: There, that's done! Poor Kira, I'm a little sorry that I'm putting him through all this now. Don't forget to review review review! _


	19. 18

**Chapter 18:**

Kira shoved past the nurse who held out the towel and bottle of water to him and flung open the door of the observation room brusquely. The edge of the door collided against the concrete wall with a loud bang as he strolled in. The observation room was another room of concrete, smaller than the previous, with a floor-to-ceiling tinted glass window on one side that overlooked the concrete cell. Through the glass, he saw nurses and paramedics lifting the fallen men out off the room on stretchers, or at least what remained of those men.

Kira scanned the room quickly. It was crowded with half a dozen men in white lab coats, who had frozen in their activities, their faces turned towards him. The expression on their face was one of comical panic. He approached them and noted with pleasure the cringes of fear.

_So, that little performance in there had frightened them too. _Kira smiled, _all the better._

He strode towards the scientists, ripping off the pulse monitor attached to his wrist and the wires and devices under his shirt. He flung them at an alarmed scientist. "Take your toys back," he spat before turning on his heel.

"Hold on."

Two scientists barred Kira's way to the exit and he whirled around to fix an icy stare on the speaker. The scientist who had spoken flinched, but he caught himself and straightened to his full height, hoping to create a more confident, intimidating stance. It didn't work.

"Get the fuck out of my way," Kira hissed dangerously.

They didn't back down. "Y-Your…" the scientist's voice came out as a squeak and he stopped to clear his throat, "Your performance in there needs improvement. We need you to…"

His voice faded into a whisper when Kira took a step towards him and he backed away hastily.

"I said," Kira snarled, advancing on the man, "get the fuck out of my way."

The scientist whimpered as Kira pinned him to the wall. And then Kira saw the change in the man's expression as his eyes darted over Kira's shoulder to glance behind him.

Kira spun around but it was too late. A dozen bodies crushed him to the floor. He started to struggle and kick, then froze when he felt the sharp sting of a needle entering his thigh. "What the fuck did you give me?" He snarled at the scientist who was now standing over him, smirking.

"Nothing serious, Kira," He grinned, "Just a mild sedative. Rau's orders."

"Son of a bitch." Kira spat, but he stopped struggling. No point - he wouldn't be able to fight the sedative. He had learnt that from experience, so he just kept his feral amethyst eyes pinned on the leering man in the white lab coat.

It didn't take more than a minute. The ceiling and the many faces above him began to swim. A wave of dizziness clouded his vision. He saw the bodies atop his ease off, but he couldn't quite feel it. Already, the sense of detachment from his body was starting. Arms lifted his limp body and he felt the darkness start to creep in. The last thing he saw was the smirking face of the scientist lingering above him and he promised himself that he would smash it in one day.

* * *

Athrun breezed into the conference room and flung himself into the chair at the head of the table. "Alright, update me."

Lunamaria swiveled around in her chair and shoved a file full of papers in front of her towards the center of the table. "We've managed to contact most of the guests and got their statements. Right now, we've got fifty officers and detectives conducting house visits. We should have a few dozen more statements coming in by the end of today. But no guarantees that we can get all of them. Some of the guests have left for business trips or are still uncontactable."

Athrun nodded, "I'm not expecting statements for all the guests. I'm expecting some not to turn up and I want to know which are the ones that are MIA."

"Got it."

Athrun pointed his pen at Shinn. "Any leads at the crime scene?"

"Not much that you don't already know." Shinn switched on the projector and a photograph of the Clyne Mansion study faded into view on the screen behind Athrun. Meyrin got up to switch off the lights and the photograph appeared much clearer. Athrun swiveled around in his chair so that he was facing the screen.

"Firstly, we've had the lab techs scour the whole room. No fingerprints, or hair. But we did find some scraps of black fabric caught in the bushes." A photograph of the thicket underneath the window came into view, followed by another that showed a close-up of torn fabric caught on the branches of the bush. "This could be where those guys changed into their gear and got into the study."

"We've also got bullet shells," another series of photographs showing the shell casings found at the crime scene. There were three lying on the cracked tiles of the first floor ballroom and another embedded into the wall behind an upturned cocktail bar. Four in total. Just like the first shot they had heard during the party and the triple-tap that had led to the full-blown chaos after that.

"We've had the shells sent to the lab. It's proven they were fired from a gun similar to that of the infiltrators of the Clyne Mansion. So it's them alright."

"We've also got three blood samples, as you already know. One of them has been confirmed to be Officer Zachary Jones'."

Shinn paused as the photograph of Zachary's body flickered onto the screen. There was a grim silence in the room as they remembered the death of one of their comrades.

Athrun cleared his throat to break the uncomfortable silence. Shinn took his cue and launched back into his report. "The second," another photograph of the strewn books and their blood-soaked pages, "has been confirmed to be Yzak's blood."

Athrun glanced over his shoulder at Dearka and raised his eyebrows questioningly.

"Yzak's fine," Dearka reassured the team, "he's a terrible patient, but he's healing well."

Relieved nods went around the table.

"Now, the third blood sample has been brought to the lab and it's been confirmed that it doesn't belong to Yzak or Zachary," Shinn continued, "so we have reason to believe that one of the perpetrators was injured. According to Yzak's statement-" The black-haired officer paused to flip through his file and began to read off it, "when he tackled one of the guys to the floor, he was actually pointing a gun at someone else in the room. Not Zachary, because the position of the body was not in his line of fire. So this means," Shinn glanced up as he close the file, "that there was some internal strife within the gang. That blood stain could belong to one of the guys injured during the confrontation."

"The crime scene lab has sent us the DNA profile of the guy and Nicol is running it through the system." He ended his report and glanced over to Nicol, who sat up in his chair as everyone turned to look at him expectantly.

"Nicol? Any news?" Athrun asked. He couldn't stop the expectant and hopeful tone that crept into his voice.

"Well, the criminal database didn't turn out any results." Nicol offered unhelpfully. The wave of disappointment that swept through the room was hard to miss.

Meyrin shook her head dejectedly, "So the guy doesn't have a criminal record. Does that mean we're back to square one?" She glanced around the table at the equally frustrated faces of her colleagues.

Nicol smiled, "well, not quite. The criminal database didn't work out, but I got some information from another database. The DNA from the blood analysis matches the subject 100%."

Chairs scraped the floor as their occupants swiveled around to stare at Nicol. He brandished a manila file in their direction and slid it across the table. Athrun flipped it open and glanced down at the documents.

The National Database for Unidentified Decedents and Missing Persons.

He raised his eyes unbelievingly at Nicol but he just nodded and shrugged, "our guy is apparently a missing person with no identification whatsoever. In fact, he's been declared dead in absentia."

* * *

Rau was smiling to himself as he hummed. He put a finger on the top of the globe on his desk and began to spin it around. He had smashed the old one when Kira had told him about Orga's flight, but he had got it replaced with a bigger, better one – with a gold axle and gold inscriptions of the names of countries. It had cost a bomb, but it would be nothing compared to the amount entering his bank account when work on that drug began.

He would get his scientists to alter the drug. Its unstable chemical makeup would be easy to manipulate and he could get it changed into a virus, or disease. Then they could work out an antidote and he could get the patent for the cure. Rau watched the globe spin around and around on its gold axle. Where would he release the virus first? Probably in a metropolitan city – many people, lots of money and plenty of suckers willing to pay for a cure. Rau could jack up the price to an exorbitant sum, because he would be the only one holding on to its key. And who wouldn't pay for their life?

He was still indulging in his fantasy, when he heard an urgent knock on his door. But his mind dismissed the urgency quickly. Things were going great, and they would only get better. Nothing could bring his mood down. His people were always in a hurry, always panicking over the smallest of things. _Dumb fools_, Rau mused.

"Come in."

The door burst open on its hinges and a man in a white lab coat stood in his doorway. His hair was disheveled and he was panting hard from running. "Sir! The chemical analysis for the drug is complete. But…" He paused, as though struggling to find the correct word, "But the drug… it's chemical makeup doesn't add up. This drug… it's fake!"

_Author's note: K, next chapter's out. Finally. Hope this explains a little about the fight from the previous chapter, moi :D I realised that I should have uploaded this two chapters together. May have cleared things up a bit then :) Anyway, don't forget to review, review, review. Next chapter should be up soon!_


	20. 19

_Author's note: K, there's the next chapter. Sorry, things are getting a bit confusing here. I originally wrote this story as an independent work, not a fanfiction. So some of the stuff in here doesn't quite match or suit the gundam seed plot or characters. Especially the first part of this chapter, which may seem totally out of place. Bear with me, people, cos I couldn't think of a way to tweak it. _

_Askani16 – no worries, just glad you're reading! I know I've said it many times, but let me say it again: thanks for the support all this while! As for my style, I'm really not sure. Could be because the nature of this story is different, or it could be cos I've been reading too many thrillers and crime stories recently! Regardless, hope this style works too!_

_Moi – ok, originally, I didn't think of writing anything about baby Cagalli in this chappie, but your suggestion/ comment inspired me to add in something about her. So this chappie is for you! It was a little last-minute, so hope it's okay :D_

**Chapter 19:**

The information churned out from the database had stated that she was thirty-seven years of age, unemployed. But when she opened the door, she could have been fifty.

"Who're you lookin' for?" She snorted haughtily, a hand on the doorknob and another resting on her hip, signifying her annoyance at the unexpected interruption. She was small and frail and theoretically, all bones and no flesh. Athrun thought he could circle both her wrists with just one hand. Her eyes were sunken and lifeless, and glared daggers at the strangers standing at her door.

"We're police officers, m'am," Athrun said, flashing his identity card at her. "We're here regarding your report about your lost son." She glared at him, eyes looking at him from under her eyelids. "Yeah," She drawled, raising her head to look at them face-on. "You found the little bastard?"

Athrun caught Shinn and Lunamaria exchanging glances in the corner of his eye. But he kept his attention on the squalid figure framed in the doorway. "No, m'am," He explained, "We're here to talk to you about him. We need some information. We'll like to come in and have a talk with you."

She snorted again and rolled those dull, lifeless eyes. "So you faggots ain't got him. So, there's nothin' to talk about." Her voice was raspy and her tone callous, like she didn't give a hoot about who was standing there, talking about her long lost son. Athrun placed a hand squarely on the door in case she tried to close it in their face. "Police business, m'am. I hope you understand."

She glared at him again, her bitter cold eyes raking over him, sizing him up, then she looked away and sauntered back into the living room. "Fine," She sneered, "but you ain't gettin' any drinks, 'cause I got none." Athrun glanced over at Luna who just shrugged and shook her head resignedly.

The apartment was an appalling apparition of its owner. It was so badly lit that Athrun and his team could barely see where they were going. There was a horrible stench hovering in the air, a stale, bitter sort of smell that made Athrun's nose twitch in protest and there was a faint ribbon of smoke that twirled slowly in the still, suffocating air. All the furniture was old and grimy and the floorboards creaked as they followed her into the living room.

She collapsed into a couch and swung her legs up to rest her ankles on a stack of cardboard boxes before picking up a cigarette that had been smothering in an ash tray. She settled back, smoking, her eyes watching her visitors sullenly.

There were no other chairs or couches available and evidently, she wasn't about to invite her guests to sit down somewhere. So Luna sidled onto a window ledge and Shinn propped himself against another stack of cardboard boxes while Athrun ended up leaning against the wall, all three facing their host.

"So," She waved the cigarette about in the air, "what d'you faggots want to know 'bout the boy?"

Luna shrugged. "How about you tell us the basics, like his particulars, his name, his height, his weight, his age, how he looks like?"

The woman dropped her head back onto the back of the couch and gazed at the ceiling. "The basics, huh? Well, he ain't got a name. I don't know 'bout his height and I ain't got a clue 'bout his weight. The last time I saw the boy, he was 'bout one year old. Can't remember how he looks like."

"What do you mean by 'he ain't got a name'?"

"Just that. He ain't got a name. I never gave him one and I don't know who his father is."

"When was the last time you saw your son?"

"Maybe twenty years ago."

"Twenty years? And you filed a missing person report what? Three years ago? What were you doing for the remaining seventeen years?"

"Nothin'. I didn't have the money anymore."

Shinn glanced at Athrun puzzled. He shrugged and turned back to the woman. "What money?"

She was tracing patterns in the air with a finger. "The money I got from selling the boy, of course." She snorted and took a pull at the cigarette in her left hand before exhaling slowly. The three agents exchanged a surprised glance. The fact that the woman had sold her son hadn't turned up in the database.

"You sold your son?"

She lolled against the back of the couch to look at them skeptically. "Why, of course," She said, irritation in her voice, as though this was a commonsensical notion that any normal person should comprehend, "I didn't want the boy. So why would I keep him if someone wanted to buy him?"

"Okay," Shinn frowned. He tapped his notebook on which he had been diligently copying all that had been said with his pen, trying to come to terms with the twist in information, "So you didn't want your son, and you sold him to someone else. Why then did you file a report and claimed him as a missing son?"

She blew out a puff of smoke. "Because I finished spendin' the money I got. Ain't got a cent left now. So I want to find the foolish bastard that bought the boy. He's a rich man. He can spare me some money. Or else I'll take the boy back." She waved her cigarette in the air again.

There was silence as the agents watched her take another puff of the cigarette. "Who did you sell him to?" Athrun questioned, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"Can't remember. Some rich guy. He just turned up at my doorstep and said he'll take the boy if I didn't want him. Paid me a million bucks. No reason for me to toss the deal into the thrash, right?"

Athrun thought that he could think of a hundred reasons for her to toss the deal into the thrash, but he kept his mouth shut.

The woman propped her elbow on the armrest of the couch and rested her chin on it, glaring at her visitors. "Any more questions, officer? 'Cause if you ain't got anythin' else, I got a client comin' for me in a while."

Athrun straightened up from his position and shook his head. "Nothing else, m'am. Thank you very much for your cooperation. We'll be in touch again." Shinn and Luna gathered their things and came to stand alongside their chief. The woman just waved her thin, bony hand at them. "Door's the other way. Close it when you leave." She sunk back into the couch and took a long drawl of the cigarette. Then she quirked an eye at them suspiciously. "Why're you here really? Is the boy in trouble?"

"There's an investigation going on at the moment, so I can't reveal too much information," Athrun shrugged, "What I can tell you is that, we've found some blood which traces back to your son."

That got the woman's attention. She sat up abruptly and stabbed the cigarette into the ash tray. "If that boy is about to be charged for murder or something, don't you dare come back to me. I've got no relations to him." She pointed a bony finger at them. "I've got nothin' to do with it. So get out of my house!"

* * *

_It was her.__ Twinkling hazel eyes and shoulder-length blonde hair framing her sweet little face. An innocent smile, dimpled cheeks._

_Again, she wrapped her chubby little arms around his thighs, gazing up at him, smiling. He crouched down till he was level with her and stared deep into her eyes. "Who are you?"_

_The little girl smiled, but said nothing and slipped her hand into his. She tugged at him and he had no choice but to stand up and follow her. _

"_Where are we going?"_

_There was no reply, only a sweet smile. _

"_Who are you?"_

_She began leading him down a flight of stairs, her little feet moving so fast that he had to skip the steps in order to catch up with her._

"_Slow down."_

_She glanced over her shoulder and smiled, tugging eagerly at him. The flight of stairs was endless. They descended it rapidly, but still the steps stretched out before them. He watched the little girl's face, her blonde hair streaming out behind her. There was a beautiful innocence etched in that sweet smile. He was mesmerized by it and was surprised when she came to a sudden halt, her wide curious eyes gazing down at the ground searchingly._

"_What's wrong?" He followed her gaze and found that they were standing at the edge of a pool. The water lapped at her toes and she wriggled them before bestowing that beautiful smile on him again. But before he could return it, she glanced down at her feet again and the smile dissipated quickly._

_The water level was increasing, spilling over the edge and pooling around their bare feet. He took a step back and the little girl followed, letting go of his hand to hug his thigh. The curiosity in her hazel eyes had been replaced with fear and panic. The water surged towards them, clawing at their feet._

_He felt frozen to the ground, unable to move with the water swirling around him, rising to his calves, then his knees. He stooped and carried the little girl, who clung to his shoulders. Tears ran down her cheeks as she cried soundlessly. _

_The water was freezing as it swallowed his legs, his torso and his shoulders and as if the ground had suddenly fallen away, he found himself struggling to stay afloat. The little girl was screaming her soundless screams now as the icy water churned around them. "It's alright," he whispered to her, "it's alright." She buried her face in the hollow of his neck as he treaded water, keeping both their heads above._

_He felt it then – the rush of adrenalin and the sense of imminent danger – as fingers closed around his right ankle. With a hard jerk, a hand pulled him under. The freezing water swallowed him, its icy grip constricting his chest, squeezing the breath out of him until he couldn't breathe and he was gasping in mouthfuls of cold water. His fingers grasped blindly as they slipped away from the girl, and he felt her thrashing and snatching at his hands. Then he heard her scream for the first time, "Kira!"_

_He kicked out at the grip around his ankle, but it didn't loosen. The distance between him and the surface of the water lengthened as he sank further. He could see her hovering above, her head dunked underwater, blonde hair splayed out all around her little face, blindly stretching out towards him._

"_Kira!"_

_For once in his life, he felt a primal fear as he watched her scream his name over and over again. And he felt then that he was going to die. _

He opened his eyes, then hurriedly closed them as the harsh light overhead blinded him. He felt terrible - it was as if he might just fall into pieces. The splitting headache and the numbness in his limbs only served to make it worse.

"Kira!"

That voice again. Was it her?

"Kira!"

No… it didn't sound right.

He cracked open an eye. The light was still too bright, but at least it didn't hurt anymore. Then he opened his other eye and drew a shallow breath into his lungs. He was lying on his back, staring up at a ceiling of cement with fluorescent lights. Before he knew what was going on, voices started up everywhere.

"Kira! Are you alright?"

"Thank heavens you woke up. We thought those mad scientists gave you an overdose."

"We've been calling out to you for hours and you were unresponsive. We thought you'd gone over the deep end."

"Exactly. What the hell happened to you?"

"Why did they sedate you?"

"How'd you get on their bad side?"

"Kira, say something."

"Will you guys just shut up?" He snapped, or at least he tried to, but his voice came out from his parched lips as a croak. The influx of questions made his head ache and the fluorescent lights above him were starting to swim again.

He closed his eyes, took a couple of deep breaths and tried to pull himself together. His teammates had thankfully fallen silent. When he opened his eyes eventually, he was better able to get his bearings. He found himself lying on a leather bench, with an IV line in his right arm and a bag of who-knew-what hanging over his head. Carefully and slowly, he tilted his head to the right, trying not to stir up the nausea and dizziness again, and saw Auel Neider grinning at him. His pale blue-haired mate was lying on his side, his head propped up on his bent elbow. Over his shoulder, Sting was smiling across at him, sitting up on his leather bench with his legs dangling over the side.

"Are you feeling better now?"

Kira turned his head to the left, towards the source of the question and there she was, lying on the bench. Stellar smiled reassuringly at him and reached out a hand to hold his. He realized that she too had an IV line in her arm and when by glancing back at his other teammates, he confirmed that they were all hooked up to an IV line.

"Are you feeling better?" Stellar repeated, her amber eyes concerned. Kira took a deep breath and made sure that he wasn't going to throw up before he turned and returned the smile, "I'm fine."

"What happened just now?"

He frowned and tried to remember how he had ended up sedated. The throbbing in his head was distracting and didn't help one bit. But he eventually remembered the breakfast at Flay's and the streak of blonde hair that had notified him of Stellar's arrival. _Rau wants to meet us,_ she had told him, as they walked towards the car side-by-side. They had driven to the Le Creuset Corporation and entered the underground facility, wherein the scientists had directed them to different labs. They had wired him with different gadgets and made him fight, just to test his reflexes. And of course, he had emerged victorious but the bastard had said something about improvement. And sedated him.

_The son-of-a-bitch._

"I was in one of their experiments," Kira growled. He slammed his fist onto the leather upholstery.

"Is that why you look so terrible?" Auel winced.

Kira glanced over at his teammate. Aside from a bandage on his brow, there was no other visible evidence of their confrontation with Orga. Shit, those scientists were bastards, but those chemicals they had injected in them were working doubt, after tomorrow, Kira might not even look as terrible as he did now. _I heal fast_, that was what he had told Flay, and no shit, he really did heal fast.

"I'll live," he grinned and Auel returned it with a sly smirk. "So, how many did you take down this time?"

"Six in the infirmary. And one is on his way to the mortuary."

Auel let out a bark of laughter. "Oh man, and you're still standing. Which one?"

"The one with the buzz cut and the barrel chest. The bouncer guy."

"That guy's all brawl and no brains." Auel paused and a cheeky grin lit up his face, "you know, sometimes, I think our place is full of extremes. Those crazy guys in the lab coats – they're all brains and no brawl. And those security people we always use as punching bags – they're all brawl and no brains. Seriously, are we the only ones in-between – with both brains and brawl? What kind of fucked-up world are we living in?"

That earned him laughter from his teammates.

"So," Kira drawled when the laughter eventually died down. He lifted his hand and inspected the cannula thoughtfully before glancing up at the IV bag hanging above his head. "What're those assholes giving us now?"

"Don't know."

"It's a new drug. Performance-enhancing, or at least that's what the bastard said."

_Improvement_, that was what the scientist had told him before he had blacked out. Kira chewed his bottom lip thoughtfully, _those mad scientists were pumping them full of chemicals that would improve their performance in the field. _Then he frowned as he recalled what that buffoon had called him – _a genetically-modified hybrid, a mutant freak_.

"What's wrong, Kira?"

"Nothing," he turned and smiled at Stellar, whose worried expression immediately softened at his reassurance. "Nothing's wrong."

_Author's note: That's all for this chapter. Don't forget to review review review. Appreciate all comments! Oh, and sorry, I realized that for the previous chapter, there was a typo: it should be Clyne Corporation, not Clyne Mansion. Sorry about that. Oh, and apologies, I'll be MIA for the next three days :( I've got a camp, so I'll be in the middle of the forest struggling to stay alive (help me!), so if you see an update over the weekend, it'll mean I survived! Otherwise…_


	21. 20

_Author's note: Finally, the next chapter's up. This chapter's more about Athrun because I wanted to add a little more depth to his character, and it's a break from Kira. One of the longest chapters though. Read on and I hope you enjoy!_

**Chapter 20:**

"Before I start, anything you want to say, Detective Zala?" Assistant Commissioner Murrue Ramius tipped the manila file at him, her eyebrows furrowed.

Athrun shook his head. "It's all in the report, Ma'am."

Murrue sighed, leaning back into her chair with the open file on her desk. "Yes, it is," she frowned, "and I have to say that I am not at all thrilled by what I'm reading." She shook her head exasperatedly as she read before glancing up at him, closing the file with a loud snap.

"Dead," she said simply, "you have one officer dead on your watch. And one injured. Explain to me again how that happened."

It was a rhetorical question. All the details about how the operation had been carried out, and how it had eventually screwed up, were in the report and Murrue had read it. The question was one of disbelief and incredulity, and Athrun had no answer to it.

Murrue sighed when there was no reply from her subordinate. She hadn't expected one. "Detective Zala, you should know that this will lead to an official reprimand in your file."

"I understand, Ma'am."

"Okay."

There was an awkward silence as Murrue took the time to examine her agent. Athrun had a stoic expression on his face and he held her gaze steadily, but she could detect the undercurrent of tension and frustration beneath the calm surface. When Athrun Zala had first entered the law enforcement agency, she had seen his stats and was impressed by the fact that he had been the youngest cadet to top his cohort at the academy and that he had a remarkable host of medals and awards under his belt. The fact that he was the adopted son of Siegel Clyne - one of the pioneers of the pharmaceutical industry and one of the richest men on earth – had made him a source of attraction. Murrue had thought that he was just a rich kid.

But the Athrun Zala she met had been modest, intelligent and eager to learn. That was when she had been the chief of the special unit. When she had been promoted to Assistant Commissioner, Athrun had been the one and only successor she had in mind. He had solved many cases with his smart intuition and eye for details. His honourable personality and the absence of any official reprimands in his file were bonus points.

Until now.

But much as she wanted to do something to help, having one dead officer and another injured was the worst thing that could ever happen to the supervisor of any operation.

She pushed down the conflicting emotions in her. "You may go, Detective." She gave Athrun a dismissive nod and watched as the blue-haired officer stood up and headed for the door.

"Athrun."

He paused and turned to look at her, his emerald eyes registering surprise that she would call him by his first name under a situation like that.

"As AC, there's nothing I can do about the official reprimand. But," Murrue let a grim smile cross her lips, "as your friend, I want you to know that this isn't your fault, even though it looks like it is. These people were armed and full of malicious intent. Zachary Jones didn't wait for backup. This isn't your fault and you've gotta remember that."

Athrun nodded, but Murrue saw the hesitation in his eyes. He didn't believe what she was saying. She opened her mouth, about to add on to what she had said, but he interrupted her with a polite "Thanks, Ma'am," before opening the door and disappearing out of sight.

* * *

Athrun sank into the chair behind his desk and let his head fall back, his emerald eyes closed.

The day hadn't gone well one bit. All day long, he had been busy. After escaping Murrue's office, he had returned to his own department to find Yzak Joule seething behind his desk, a white bandage still covering his face. The silver-haired officer had been discharged in the morning; but instead of going home, the stubborn idiot had turned up at the office, digging through the reports on his desk feverishly, hoping to find some clues on his attacker. Athrun had had to manhandle him into a car and charge Dearka with the thankless task of sending him home.

He had later called the lab, only to be disappointed by the fact that Miriallia Haw had no further leads on the unknown chemical trace. She needed more time, and time was something Athrun didn't have. He had spent the rest of the day staring at photographs of the crime scene, trying to piece together what had happened, and reading the statements of the guests in the hopes of finding something insightful.

Now that night was approaching and ennui was setting in, he found that there were emotions in him that had been suppressed by the flurry of activities in the day, but were now slowly rising.

The dressing down by Murrue, which wasn't much of a talking-to, had been the last nail in the coffin of his guilt. It wasn't what she had said about the official reprimand or the hint of disappointment he had detected in her voice. It was the last sentence she had said, about it not being his fault. It made him guilty because he knew it wasn't true.

In the nights following the failed operation at the Clyne Mansion, Athrun had revisited the incident numerous times, lying on the couch in his office. What had gone wrong? Plenty, actually, and all of them his fault. The perpetrators had gotten in through the window, which meant that they had been on the grounds. So, why didn't Team #1 and Team #2 pick them up? Because these criminals were experienced, stealthy, focused – they knew what they were going for; but both his teams didn't. His subordinates weren't aware of how many people they were expecting, or how they looked like, or which window they would enter from. And it was his fault for not pre-empting and preparing his teams mentally.

And how did those criminals get up to the second floor? They must have had gadgets with them, like a grappling hook or something. So why didn't Team #1 detect their gadgets when they were conducting physical checks. Athrun had been there, leaning against the door, watching every move but he hadn't detected anything out of the ordinary either. So how did they smuggle their gadgets into the compound? What had he missed out? Why, in the first place, did he miss out anything?

And the laser trigger alarm system. The security cameras. The motion detectors. All immobilized before anyone on his team had realised what was happening. There must've been someone coordinating it. Maybe one of the perpetrators, or maybe someone stationed elsewhere, in a control center of some sort. And the disruption in their line of communication which had prevented them from contacting each other. _That's why Zachary didn't get backup,_ Athrun thought bitterly_, not because he didn't wait, but because he couldn't get any._ So why the fuck didn't he see it coming? The disruption of the security cameras in the Clyne Mansion should have been a lesson.

Athrun imagined what it was like facing down a group of armed criminals alone, yelling desperately into his microphone for backup but realizing only too late that there would be none coming. How would he feel? Panic and fear definitely. Hopelessness? Perhaps. And a sense of betrayal.

At the police academy, his instructors had drilled into him that fellow officers were family, and family members watched each other's back. He hadn't done that. He hadn't watched Zachary's back. He had let a member of his family get his neck slit. He remembered the feel of Zachary's wife collapsing into his arms when she had received the news and the faces of his children who were so confounded by the turn of events that they didn't cry. They just stared up at him, as if they knew he was the one responsible for the fact that their daddy wasn't coming home.

And they were right, because he was responsible.

"Chief?" A soft, hesitant voice broke him out of his reverie and he raised his head to see Meyrin standing in his doorway. She pointed at the phone on his desk. "You've got a call."

"From?"

"Lacus Clyne."

"About the investigation?"

"No, personal matters."

Athrun straightened in his leather chair and busied himself with opening one of the numerous files on his desk. "Just tell her" he hesitated, feeling guilt and shame mounting in him, "I'm not here… uh… just say I've gone home."

He saw Meyrin wince out of the corner of his eye, but he ignored it and pretended to be busy scanning through the document. He didn't know why he was lying and he didn't have the energy to figure it out.

Meyrin returned to her cubicle and he heard her talking on the phone. "Yes, Lacus… sorry, the chief's left the office already… yes, yes, I know. I'm sorry. I just came back from running an errand, so I didn't know that he had already left. I just assumed that he was still around until I looked into his office… no, he's taken his bag, so I don't think he's coming back. Do you want to leave him a message or something… what? But he's not around… no, wait… you're what?"

Athrun heard Meyrin's phone slam back into its cradle and a flustered Meyrin burst into his office again. "Chief, I'm sorry! I told her you were not around but Lacus said-"

"-she would be coming up to see for herself." Lacus pushed Meyrin aside to replace her in his doorway and finished the sentence. Then she smiled sweetly at the dumbstruck man behind his desk. "Evening, Athrun."

Athrun sighed and dropped his file. "What are you doing here, Lacus?"

She shrugged. "I called your home phone and your cell phone and couldn't get you. So you had to be in the office. And when you got Meyrin to lie for you, I knew it was time for me to make an entrance." She plopped herself down in front of his desk uninvited.

Athrun eyed her critically and sighed again. "Go home, Meyrin," he nodded at the red-haired girl who was still staring at Lacus slack-jawed, "I'll handle the rest and lock up."

"Are you sure, Chief?"

"Positive. Tell the rest of the team to take off too. It's been a tough day."

He waited until Meyrin had left his office before turning back to his files, trying to ignore the pink-haired woman who was staring at him across his desk.

"You lied to me," Lacus said accusatorily.

"I was going home soon," Athrun muttered, "If you hadn't turned up, I would have already been on my way out of the office."

"So I'm the one holding you back now?"

Athrun glanced up hurriedly from his file, hearing the hurt in her voice. "I didn't mean that-"

She cut him off with a raised hand and began to glance around his office. Her gray eyes landed on the couch pushed up against the wall. "You've been sleeping on the couch. The jacket slung over the armrest instead of the coat-rack or the back of your leather chair suggests it. There's a shallow dent in the seat which indicates a long period of time spent on it. Aren't I right?" She eyed Athrun critically.

"How'd you know all that?"

"I don't spend so much time around you and learn nothing."

"So maybe I should recruit you as my investigator," Athrun smiled wryly. Lacus ignored the comment, and the smile. "How long haven't you been home?" He shrugged and returned to his file even though he was not registering any of the information that he was reading.

"Let me jog your memory: you've been holed up here for a week, Athrun."

"How'd you make a guess like that, Detective Clyne? What evidence in my office indicates a week-long stay?" He grinned.

"Not evidence. An informant." She laughed when she saw the sceptical look on Athrun's face. "You recruited my secretary as your informant?"

Lacus laughed again, her gray eyes twinkling with amusement. "You're only half right, Detective Zala. Meyrin is only my informant on Saturdays. Shinn works for me on Mondays, Luna on Tuesdays, Dearka on Wednesdays, Nicol on-"

"Hold on," Athrun interrupted, "you recruited my entire team?"

"Yes." Lacus flashed him a triumphant grin. "Trust me when I say that I even know when you visit the bathroom."

Athrun rolled his eyes in exasperation. The Lacus he knew was really capable of doing something like that. "I'm going to have to refurbish my entire team now, Lacus," he sighed.

"Don't bother," Lacus grinned, "I'll get to the new recruits too, eventually."

"Why'd you do that for?"

The grin on Lacus' face faded. "Because I'm seeing the signs again, Athrun."

"What signs?"

"The signs that you're going off the deep end."

Athrun dropped his gaze and went back to studying his file intently. Until Lacus leaned across his desk, snapped his file shut with a hand and pushed her face into his line of vision.

"Don't brush me off, Athrun," she said warningly. She cupped his chin with her fingers and forced him to meet her gaze. "Stop beating youself up."

"I'm not," Athrun said, but his protest sounded weak even to his own ears.

"Bullshit," Lacus said, "Holing up in your office for days on end. Did you take lunch? Let me answer that for you: No. How long since you've had a decent night's sleep? Answer is: you've never had one since Officer Jones died. Poring over your reports obsessively. Blowing up at your agents for no apparent reason. Lying to me. Those are the signs, Athrun."

"I-"

"Don't deny it." Lacus interrupted, tightening her grasp on his chin, her gray eyes watching him closely. Athrun kept his mouth shut under the intense scrutiny.

"It's not your fault, Athrun."

"It is," he snapped before Lacus could cut him off again, "if I had been more alert, more aware of what was happening, if I had predicted what would happen, Zachary wouldn't have died." He pulled away.

"You're not a fortune-teller, Athrun. You're not god. You're human. No one knew what would happen at the party. Zachary Jones didn't die because of you," Lacus persisted, then she paused before adding quietly, "and I'm not just talking about Zachary's death, Athrun. You know what else I'm referring to-"

"Don't," Athrun snapped, emerald eyes flashing angrily. "Don't go there."

Grey eyes narrowed back at him. "I'll go there if that's what it takes to keep you from falling over the edge," Lacus retorted, the tension and frustration creeping into her voice, "you're not responsible for what your father did, Athrun. You don't owe anyone anything."

"Stop it."

"Your father made those decisions. Just because he was your father and he's dead doesn't mean you need to pay back on his behalf. You're not responsible. Your father chose to kill those police officers and take those innocent lives with him. It wasn't your fault-"

The files on Athrun's desk were swept off with a loud clatter and exploded all over the floor. She stared impassively at Athrun who was now towering over her, the fury and rage rolling off him in waves. "I said shut the fuck up," he snarled.

"Or what?" Lacus stood. She was shorter than Athrun but she met his eyes unflinchingly, using her calmness and poise to battle against his wild anger. "You'll hit me? Kill me?" She challenged, "get rid of me because I'm standing in your way? Just like how those police officers and innocent people were standing in your father's way?"

Her last point hit home as she saw Athrun back down visibly, his furious expression replaced by one of horror and disgust. "I'm not my father," he whispered.

"No," Lacus said simply, "you're not."

She watched his knees cave in under him as he fell back into his leather chair. "You're not your father," she pressed on, "so why do you always try to bear responsibility for what he did? You're Officer Jones' superior, that's why you feel responsible for his death. It was unfortunate. No one could have foreseen it. They know that. I know that. Damn it, Athrun, you know that too, but you choose to beat yourself up because you feel that you need to contribute back to the police force after what your father did. You're taking this harder than all of us because you feel that your inability to prevent his death makes you his murderer. You're making yourself out to be your father."

By the time she was done speaking, Athrun was hunched down in his leather chair. He was holding his head in both hands, eyes screwed tight, as though he could shut her out simply by not seeing her. Lacus stepped around his desk and put both hands on his, lowering them gently. Fearful emerald eyes met her calm grey ones.

"You're not responsible for what your father did," she whispered, "it's not your fault that Officer Jones' died. You're only human, Athrun. You can't go around shouldering all these responsibilities." It's time to let go."

_Author's note: There, that's done! Okay, I realised this chapter is somewhat different from the previous ones, in terms of the level of emotions. And I'm a little concerned about the ending. Is it too abrupt? So I'll really really appreciate feedback! Good or bad, just throw it at me! Review review review!_


	22. 21

_Author's note: Hiya! Apologies for the late update, everyone. I was getting a little writer's block and realized that there was a little mix-up in the timeline of the narrative. I hope I haven't screwed it up too much. I thought this chapter was lousy, compared to the rest, unfortunately. :( But I didn't really know how to improve it. What do you think?_

**Chapter 21:**

The target was a woman living in a fetid little cubical edifice made entirely of bricks. It was boxed in by dark, wet alleys on each side, a dilapidated car park in the back and a rundown street in the front. A fucked-up neighbourhood, where no one gave a damn about anyone else and where no one would think twice about a gunshot or a scream in the late of the night.

Perfect.

They pulled over in the car park, in a dark blue van with tinted windows and Sting killed the engine. In the ensuing silence, Kira scanned the car park through the back window. Despite the gloom, he could see perfectly – every nook and cranny – and immediately picked out the shadows in the beat-up truck across the car park.

"We've got company," he muttered.

Stellar clambered across the seat to glance over his shoulder, "who are they?"

"The police."

"Are you sure?" Auel frowned. "Why should the police be camped out here in a shitty neighbourhood just to protect this woman? Who the hell is she?"

"Rau's orders were to eliminate her at all cost. Her identity doesn't concern us." Kira shot a warning glance in Auel's direction and the pale blue-haired man backed off. He knew that tone in Kira's voice. _End of discussion. _

Kira pointed at the beat-up truck, "Auel, Stellar, get rid of them."

A grin lit up Stellar's face, "Easy peasy." Without hesitation, she reached for her right sleeve and ripped it off its seam to expose her flawless white shoulder. Then she tore at the front of her blouse, scattering buttons across the floor of the van, and exposing the corner of her black bra. "Honey," Auel laughed, his eyes flashing dangerously in the darkness, "You're just out to seduce us, aren't you?"

She laughed and leaned forward to press a kiss to his lips. "Don't be too rough with me, darling," she whispered. Before Auel could come up with his snide remark, she had thrown open the sliding door of the van and took off, dashing towards the beat-up truck.

Auel shook his head. "Oh, such a seductress," he winked mischievously before leaping out of the van in pursuit.

Kira and Sting watched from the shadows as their teammates ran across the vacant carpark, Stellar taking the lead. Auel caught up to her inches away from the truck and she began to shriek, kicking wildly. Her cries echoed in the dead silence of the night. A slap across the cheek had her flying across the hood of the truck and she scrambled to her feet, diving for the door of the passenger seat.

"Help me, please," she screamed, "Help me!"

"Oh my, they're such good actors."

Kira tossed a glance at Sting. The green-haired man's face was hidden in the shadows but the sly, amused grin was hard to miss. Kira returned his attention to the dramatic scene unfolding before him, just in time to see the window of the passenger seat buzz down and the head of a man was thrust out of the window.

The officer undercover yelled a warning at Auel who was approaching at a rapid pace, but he didn't finish his sentence as Auel strolled up to the open window, pulled his pistol and shot a double tap through it, killing both the officer and his partner.

Kira watched as Auel and Stellar shared a high-five and trudged back the way they had come. He smiled and slid out of the van to meet his teammates. _It was t__ime to move on._

"I'm fine, you know," Athrun sighed in exasperation as the car glided to a stop, "I'm not suicidal. You didn't have to fetch me home."

Lacus turned to smile at him as she killed the engine. "I know," she assured him, "I just thought you'll like to have some company. Since you've fetched me home so many times, I thought I'll just return the favour."

"I could have driven," Athrun protested, "I'm not so screwed up that I can't even drive straight. Besides, you don't think I'm going to let you make your way home alone from here, do you? I'm going to have to fetch you home now."

Lacus laughed at his comment. "Don't be silly. I've got my transport arranged: the chauffeur's coming to pick me up. Don't take it to heart, Athrun, I'm not trying to bruise your male ego."

Athrun shook his head, a faint smile gracing his lips. The undercurrent of tension and sadness in him had faded but exhaustion was now eating away at him, the aftereffect of the near breakdown he had experienced in his office.

He opened the passenger door and stepped out onto the pavement, glancing around the neat little neighbourhood over the top of the car. Both sides of the street were flanked with low houses of one or two-storeys. His apartment was located at the corner, a modern one-storey house painted grey and shaped like an 'L'. Back when he had first entered the law enforcement agency, he had refused Siegel Clyne's offer to finance his accomodation and had scrimped and saved every penny to buy this charming apartment. Furnished with his own bar, stylistic furniture and a state-of-the-art hi-fi system, it was a tasteful bachelor's pad. He had always been proud of it – it was a symbol of his effort and his independence – and it was good to finally be home.

Until he saw the light blazing in his living room window.

He froze, his hand flying instinctively to the butt of his gun. "Lacus," he hissed, "stay in the car." He tossed a glance in the direction of the driver's seat and panicked at the sight of the empty seat. Glancing up frantically, he nearly passed out when he saw Lacus striding up the path to his front door, oblivious to the threat.

_Shit!_

There was a metal fire escape mounted behind the brick building with open steel metal gratings. The ladder was up though. Under normal circumstances, they would have brought a grappling hook with them, but this time, maybe they wouldn't need it.

Kira took a deep breath, staring up at the ladder hanging above him. He rested a palm on the rough brick wall, trying to gain bearing over his surroundings. Knees bent, he felt the rapid surge of adrenalin and the familiar coiling of tension in his thighs. But this time, there was something different. _He_ felt different. Stronger, more powerful. _Only one storey. No problem._

He exhaled and jumped, kicking at the wall to propel himself upwards and caught the last rung in his hands. The ladder swung down with an ominous clang in the otherwise silent car park.

"Nice," Sting grinned as Kira descended to the ground, "Never saw you do that before. Whatever those assholes in the lab gave us, it works like a charm." Kira returned the compliment with a smirk.

The target lived on the third floor. They scaled the ladder silently and broke through the window to get onto the landing. Her apartment was the third to the right.

"Mine?" Auel whispered, grinning maniacally as they crowded around her door.

"Why not?" Kira smiled.

Sting slipped on a pair of black gloves and pressed the rusty doorbell. They heard the buzz from within the apartment and there was a minute of silence before a rustle of movement.

"Who's that?" A voice laced with exhaustion but full of wariness.

Kira glanced at Stellar pointedly and she caught on. "I'm so sorry to disturb you at this hour, Mdm," Stellar's voice was heavily accented, "My employer - Mr. Roanoke? He came just now and said he left something in your bedroom. He sent me to pick it up for him."

"Do you know what time it is? Why the fuck can't he pick it up tomorrow?" The wariness was immediately replaced with impatient annoyance.

"Sorry, Mdm. So sorry. He doesn't want his wife to be suspicious. Mr. Roanoke sends me to get it back before morning. I've got money, Mdm. He sent me with some money to pay you back for the inconvenience."

The woman cursed. Then there was the sound of the door chain being released and fumbling at the doorknob.

Auel cocked his gun.

"What the fuck did he leave behind?" The door flew open and a woman appeared in the doorway, her hands on her hips. Disheveled, dirty blonde hair, a bony frame and small furious eyes in a sunken face that glared daggers at them. _Bingo. _

Auel didn't hesitate.

The woman fell to the ground, her mouth frozen in a scream that hadn't had time to escape her throat. Her small beady eyes were wide with terror. Blood spilled from the bullet wound in her chest and pooled on the filthy floor. She had fallen to the ground, just short of the door and Sting closed it quietly with his gloved hand.

They descended down the fire escape ladder with Kira bringing up the rear. He lifted the ladder again as the last of his team reached the ground floor and he swung himself over the metal railing to the ground, breaking his fall easily and lithely with a tuck and roll. They clambered into the van, pausing only to glance at the unmoving shadows in the beat-up truck. Then Sting revved up the engine and the dark blue van pulled out of the car park.

_Mission accomplished. No problem._

_Author's note: I only have one thing to say: Review, review, review!_


	23. 22

**Chapter 22:**

Athrun had had small talks with experienced senior officers before. During coffee breaks or during boring surveillance or stake-outs that lasted for days. Some senior officers had described how time had stopped when they had been involved in highly dangerous situations. For Athrun, it was a little difficult to imagine. He had never really felt the world freeze over, not until he found himself staring in disbelief at Lacus who was striding purposefully and ignorantly into the grasp of danger.

By sheer force of will, Athrun got his feet working. "Lacus!" He snapped, taking off in a run. He caught her a few feet away from his door and threw an arm around her bodily to drag her away.

"W-What are you doing?" she asked bewildered, "What's wrong?"

"Ssh, something's not right. Stay in the car." He manhandled her away from his house. "Intruders."

"What? Don't be silly. There's no-"

Light flooded the path as the front door flew open. "Get down!" Athrun threw himself over Lacus, crushing her underneath him. _Damn!_ They were in a precarious situation now, in the worst place they could ever be – lying in the middle of the path, exposed to the whole wide world. He waited for the hiss of bullets flying over his head or the searing impact of metal tearing through his flesh.

"What are you two lovebirds doing on the ground?"

Athrun blinked. _What? _He raised his head tentatively at first, then more confidently, and stared at the silhouette at his door. He _knew_ that voice, but before he could place a name to that silhouette, another figure had stepped over, blocking out the rest of the light.

"Sheesh, guys. Get a room."

Now _that_ voice, Athrun sure as hell recognized it. He scrambled to his feet, charged through the door and tackled Dearka Elsman to the ground. "What the hell are you doing here? How did you get in?"

He threw a none-too-gentle punch at Dearka's face, his blonde-haired subordinate struggling to fend off the assault as best as he could. "Hey!" he snapped as Athrun grazed his jaw, "I wasn't the one who picked the lock. It was Luna!" He tucked both arms between their grappling bodies and shoved Athrun off him with tremendous effort. Athrun fell back on his heels, panting hard, glaring daggers at his fallen comrade. If looks could kill, Dearka would have dissipated into ashes. "Man, I could kill you," he snapped, "You asshole. What the hell are you doing in my house? I could have shot you, Dearka. And maybe I should have. You blithering idiot!"

That was when he heard the chuckles and laughter around him. Athrun glanced up from where he was crouching and narrowed his eyes at the sight of his team and a whole lot of other familiar faces standing around with laughter in their eyes. He picked out Cagalli Yamato in the crowd, even Miriallia Haw.

"Do I _want_ to know what is going on?" Athrun breathed out.

"That depends on what you'll like to know." Miriallia laughed. She was leaning against the open door, watching him with amusement. Athrun quirked an eyebrow at her. "Well, I am hoping someone would enlighten me as to why I've come home to discover that my house has been broken into by my friends." "Well," Shinn laughed, "by AC Ramius' orders-" He gave a mock salute. "We have been tasked to 'cheer you up'."

Athrun narrowed his eyes. "By breaking and entering?"

"We pulled it together at the last minute," Lunamaria explained sheepishly, "it was meant to be a surprise. But uh-"

"-it didn't exactly work out as we planned," Meyrin concluded, wincing.

"It's a gesture of goodwill gone a little wrong, that's all," Lacus offered him a hand, smiling, and pulled him to his feet. "Yeah," Dearka winced exaggeratedly, "you've got to lighten up, Boss." He caught the hand that Athrun offered him in turn. "God, you pack a punch, Chief."

"Serves you right," Athrun commented dryly.

"Okay," Nicol threw up both hands to placate the crowd, "enough talk, and violence. We see that enough at work. Let's party!"

There was a chorus of agreements, even as Athrun looked on at them skeptically. The party moved into his living room, whooping, chattering and punching shoulders. They were acting as if they were completely at home, as if they owned the place! It was outrageous. Athrun felt as if he had fallen down a rabbit-hole. He was dizzy from the onslaught of events, of one surprise after another. Emotionally drained and physically worn-out, he was _so_ not ready for this. All he wanted to do was to lie down in bed and sleep it off.

"Come on."

A tug at his sleeve made him glance around and the reassuring smile Cagalli flashed him drove a little warmth into his tired body.

"Come on, Athrun!" Dearka echoed, clapping his hands loudly to grasp his attention. "Come on, come on!" The party had stopped, jammed in the hallway leading to the living room. Heads were turned towards him and eyes were waiting expectantly.

Athrun smiled, the first genuine smile in days. _Yeah, it was really good to be home._

* * *

Rau Le Creuset was glaring hard at his monitor, his long deft fingers drummed his frustration on the edge of the desk. He was glowering at the photograph of a man with navy-blue hair and bright intelligent emerald eyes. The profile laid out alongside the photograph labeled him as: _Detective Athrun Zala. Chief of Special Unit. _

Rau knew all about Athrun Zala. The detective had been on his case for months now. More importantly, he knew Athrun Zala was the adopted son of Siegel Clyne which meant that the case was personal to him. And Rau knew that the more personal a case was, the more driven he was to solve it.

Damn, the son-of-a-bitch had even tracked down the woman who had been one of their suppliers years ago. How the hell did the bastard do that? What had he uncovered? His subordinates should have wiped out all history of the transaction. Rau had immediately sent in a waste management team to eliminate her before things got worst. _Perhaps all suppliers should be discarded as soon as transactions are done. Tie up all the loose ends._ He made a mental note to mention that to his subordinates. Let them figure out how to get it done.

And then there was that issue of the fake serum.

One thing Rau Le Creuset hated most was being lied to. No one dared to lie to him. Except Athrun Zala who had tricked them with a fake serum and taken them all for a wild ride. Treated them like idiots and for that, Rau was going to kill him. But that could wait. Rau was a patient man. What he needed most now was the real serum. _Where could Athrun Zala have hidden it?_ The kid was young, but definitely not rash and stupid. Even if he dispatched Kira's team to go undercover, Rau was sure they wouldn't find any clues, or else it would take too long.

Oh, and that other minor issue about Orga's team. They had literally disappeared from the surface of the earth. Rau smiled to himself. That meant that his assassins were good, and in turn, the trainers he had employed to teach them were good. Nevertheless, Orga's team had become a loose end now and they had to be taken out. No matter - he had waste management teams at his disposal.

A tentative knock on the door. "Come in," he called, swiveling his chair around to meet the scientist who creaked open his door and poked his head around it. "Sir, Kira's team is back in base. The target's been taken out."

"Excellent," Rau grinned. What had he said about his assassin teams being good? They weren't just good. They were the very best.

"Anything else for them, Sir?"

"No," Rau waved a hand in dismissal, "let them go home and have a good rest."

He watched the scientist leave his office and he sank back into his leather chair, interlocking his fingers thoughtfully. The photograph of Athrun Zala stared back impassively at him from his computer monitor. "I wonder what makes you tick, Athrun," he muttered, smiling.

* * *

"Leave it, guys. I'll handle it."

Dearka tsked at him and wagged a finger in his face. "Don't act Mr. Macho in front of us, Chief. I thought we've already established the fact that you're not alone in this."

"That's absolutely right, even though I can't believe I'm agreeing with Elsman," Miriallia chimed in, shaking her head, "but we're here to help, Athrun. You've got to trust us." She swept drained beer cans off the table into the black garbage bag she was holding.

Cagalli paused in her task of gathering empty pizza boxes and quirked a suspicious eyebrow. "Since when does Mr. Macho listen to our advice?"

"That," Lacus smiled, "I definitely agree to." She stooped to pick up the strewn cushions scattered all over the living room floor and tossed them onto the sleek grey sofa, where Meyrin and Lunamaria were straightening them out. "Is it a boss-thing? The whole issue of trust?" Meyrin wondered out loud, glancing at her sister curiously. Luna shrugged, "Maybe."

"Nah," Nicol breezed past with a tray of empty wine glasses. "It's an Athrun-thing," he yelled from the kitchen. He emerged again with the empty tray and grinned at Athrun who was frowning and smiling at the same time. They had been doing that all evening, chattering incessantly and insulting him as though he wasn't around to hear them. The conversation flowed like the tide, endless and impossible for him to squeeze in more than a few words each time.

"Are you guys going to keep this up?" He demanded, pointing an accusatory finger at them. "You're just paying me back for all the times I've ordered you around, aren't you?"

"_Finally_," Shinn sighed dramatically, "he's caught on." Everyone laughed.

Athrun shook his head but he couldn't hide the smile. Man, they were like one big family. _The_ family that would lounge around the living room at eleven p.m., sipping beer, devouring pizza and watching television. _The_ family that would bicker and insult each other. Like a normal, typical, average family. A family he had never had.

"Penny for your thoughts?" He was snapped out of his reverie by Lacus' gentle touch on his arm and her concerned blue-gray eyes focused on his face.

He shook his head, but didn't manage to get a word out as Dearka interrupted him, "Boss always goes off by himself in his head, Lacus. Don't worry about it. What's the worst that could happen?"

"We're used to the sound of the gears in his head moving."

"Always in constant motion. Every day, every hour, every minute, every second."

"You should be concerned if you don't hear them one day."

"Means he's really going off the deep end."

"I bet you, he's thinking about the case."

"How much?"

"Ten bucks."

"Fifty."

"Twenty, and that's the highest I'll go."

"Oh god, guys, would you cut it out?" Athrun sighed, throwing his hands up in surrender. "I get it. I'm a pain in the ass, always in your faces. I get it. Ease up on the mental torture, guys. I can't take any more of this."

His house visitors fell into a fit of laughter and he found himself joining in. Laughter was still ringing in the air by the time the living room was spotless. Athrun saw his guests out - a peck to the cheek for the ladies, a punch in the shoulder and a bear hug for the men. He watched them troop down his pathway and separated towards different cars, hands held high in waves and farewells.

The sudden silence that fell upon the room felt bittersweet. Athrun was still reeling from the excitement, but he was also aware of the loneliness that had been made more apparent with the departure of his family.

"Gears in your head moving again?"

He turned and smiled at Lacus who was giving the table a last wipe. "Well," he closed the door behind him and headed for the kitchen, "it's what Cagalli said, right? If you don't hear these gears moving, it'll mean I've gone over the deep end. I thought that's what you didn't want me to do." Lacus trailed along after him into the kitchen.

"When's the chauffeur coming?" Athrun turned on the tap, washed out the wine glasses and handed them to Lacus one at a time.

"He'll be here in ten minutes." Lacus polished the wine glasses off with a dry cloth.

They made small talk as Athrun dragged a chair from the dining and climbed onto it to return the wine glasses to the cupboards above.

"I'm sorry."

Lacus paused in her task and gazed up at Athrun in surprise. He was looking down at her from the chair, earnest emerald eyes filled with guilt and shame.

"For?"

"For what happened at the party. It was meant to be a homecoming. Siegel spent so much time planning for it, but it turned out to be a circus instead."

"Well, I like circuses." Lacus smiled, returning to her polishing.

"I'm serious."

"So am I." She handed him two glasses and watched as he placed them back onto the shelf. "You weren't the one who barged in with the guns, Athrun. You were the one covering all bases, planning and scheming to keep us safe from harm. If you hadn't, the number of casualties _could_ have increased." She paused, then gave him a sideways look, changing the subject, "besides, I had a wonderful time."

"Wonderful time?" Athrun stared at her in disbelief.

"I enjoyed myself," Lacus shrugged, "at least, until things started turning ugly." Then her beautiful lips curled into a smile and she gazed up at him, "I got together with the girls, you know. Remember Alicia, Seraphine, Betty? We were in the same class back in high school? Gosh, I hadn't seen them in such a long time." She shook her head, reminiscing her school days. "We had a dare," she laughed, her blue-gray eyes beaming, "just like old times."

"What about?"

She lifted the last two wine glasses up to Athrun. "I had to ask a guy out to dance, Athrun! It was awful."

"Why? You're a charming lady. I was honoured to be your date that night, even though I wasn't a good companion." Athrun replaced the wine glasses on the shelf, clambered off the chair and began to drag it back to the dining area.

"He didn't look honoured one bit," Lacus laughed. "He looked _aggravated_ that I had picked him. But there was something about him, Athrun. I can't quite explain it." She paused, frowning thoughtfully, her fingers fiddling absently with a lock of pink hair. "He had… really lonely eyes. I just thought… maybe he could do with some company…"

"Ever the perfect hostess," Athrun teased, grinning back at Lacus, who followed him out of the kitchen, wiping her hands on the cloth, "So, who was the lucky guy?"

"Oh, I don't know him well. He's a representative from DEX Enterprises. He told me his name was Kira Hibiki."

* * *

The neighbourhood was empty and silent when he trudged up the narrow one-way street, a lonesome figure in the night, his hands deep in the pockets of his jeans and the collar of his leather jacket turned up against the wind. He could sense the weather changing – the dry, brittle air and the stinging slap of the wind. It was going to get much colder.

He turned at the fifth apartment and ascended the little stone steps. The house was eerily quiet when he slipped open the door. He had never bothered with a lock. There was nothing worth stealing in his house. He owned nothing, had nothing.

Shutting the door behind him, he toed off his sneakers, took a step in the direction of the bedroom and found himself stepping on something. He flicked the light switch and crouched down to take a better look. It was a paper napkin, like those often used in diners and cafes. It had been slipped under his door and he could see words scribbled on its underside in black ink. Cautiously, he flipped it over with a nail and scanned the message.

_U didn't come. We were waiting for u bcos u said u would try._

He tore the napkin in two and crumpled it in his hand, tossing it aside. A sudden, unexplainable anger surged through him as he stormed through his bedroom and into the bath, ripping his clothes off and scattering them all over the floor. He turned the shower on full blast and stood under the bitterly cold stream.

He didn't miss the sarcastic, accusatory tone in Flay's words. The hurt in her message. He had forgotten all about the tasting session she proposed. It hadn't crossed his mind for a single second since he had stepped out of her diner that morning, two days ago. _I'll try to be there. No promises, Flay. But I'll try._ To a certain extent, he had made her a promise, only to go right ahead and break it. The only 'friend' he had ever had.

_Damn Flay and her stupid tasting session. Damn Sai and his __stupid__ menu. Damn Rau. __Damn those scientists. __Damn the dead woman. Damn it all._

_And damn himself._

He remembered the year he had 'graduated' from Rau's training facility and given a place to stay Out There, just like all the other 'graduates'. His first home out of the training facility, fully furnished, fully operational. Only that he owned nothing in it. He had no bank account, no investments, no car, no housing contracts, no bank loans. He had had no say in the apartment, no say in how it would be renovated, or what sort of furniture to put in it. Nothing at all. His meager monthly allowance came to him in a folded envelope left on his dresser by the housekeeper who came on alternate days. He didn't even have a say in hiring her. And secretly, he suspected that the housekeeper answered to his trainers at the facility. She wasn't a housekeeper; she was more of a spy. Rau had people who could pull strings and arrange things like that.

The stint of independence had thrown him off guard. It wasn't fear – they had trained him to be 'fearless' back in the facility, but he had been disoriented by the sudden change in surroundings. The training facility had been a prison, a living hell. Recruits like him had been taught to fight for their food because there was never enough to go around. If you wanted to eat, you had to fight, and you had to _win_.

The day after his 'graduation', he had found himself like a newborn babe or a kid at his first day of school, unsure of where to buy his lunch. That day, he heard his doorbell ring and found a red-haired woman standing in his doorway. "Your take-out, Mister," She had grinned, holding out a plastic bag. At his blank expression, she did a double-take and squinted at the faded numbers on his doorplate. "Oh, I'm so sorry," she had apologized sheepishly, "I got the wrong house. Again." She backed down the stone steps and glanced up at him, smiling. "You're new here? I haven't seen you around."

When he nodded, she stuck a hand out at him. "Welcome to our little neighbourhood then." She shook his hand enthusiastically. "There's not much around here, but it's still home. Have you had lunch? My boyfriend and I, we own a diner just around the corner. Why don't you come down for a meal? I can take you there, right after I send this take-out, that is. By the way, I'm Flay. You are?"

And that first encounter had drawn him to her. Gave him a friend that he had never had.

"Screw you, Kira," He muttered, turning his face towards the punishing flow of water. "You fuck up everyone you're close to, don't you?" The harsh coldness of the water dulled his senses. His teeth chattered and his body began to spasm and shiver, fighting against the onset of hypothermia. Maybe he could freeze to death, just standing there under the cold shower. But who was he kidding? He couldn't die. _They_ wouldn't let him die. He was sure there were pinhole cameras in his apartment. There were people watching him. Always. He didn't have privacy, not even in his own home - if that was what he could call it, since he didn't own house or anything _in_ it. Besides, all those weird chemicals injected into him would ensure he lived. Even his own body betrayed him.

They wouldn't let him die, but they sure as hell couldn't stop him from punishing himself.

Kira slid to the floor and curled up on the white tiles, letting the cold water beat down on his naked body. All alone. Completely vulnerable. And it felt so good.

_Author's note: I think there's something sadistic about me. Anyways, hope this chapter was a little more enjoyable. Just wanted to show the contrast between Athrun and Kira. By the way, just noticed that I didn't draw the divider lines between each section. So sorry about that. Hope it wasn't confusing. Yup, so review, review, review, pretty please!_


	24. 23

_Author's note: There's the next chapter. A little bit more fun in this one, although I just realized it's a very long chapter. Very very delighted to hear from other reviewers. Long time no see, Seiba! Yup, thank you to one and all for the support! Hope you enjoy this one too._

**Chapter 23:**

"Your bagel."

Athrun accepted the brown paper bag that Meyrin handed him across the desk and unrolled the top, taking a good whiff of the inside, "Smells nice."

"And your daily dose of caffeine."

"Now this," Athrun grinned as he received the Styrofoam cup from his secretary, "smells absolutely divine."Meyrin wrinkled her nose at his comment. "Lacus is going to kill me when she finds out."

"Well, I'll convince the management to increase your pay if you don't say anything," Athrun proposed, taking a sip of his steaming hot coffee and peering at her over the lip of his Styrofoam cup.

"I'll think about that," Meyrin cocked her head thoughtfully, "although I'll rather not risk Lacus' wrath. Anything else, Chief?"

Athrun set his cup carefully to one side and rummaged through the stack of files lying scattered all over the surface of his desk. He pulled out a manila file from the mess, opened it, scanned through the document and handed it over to Meyrin. "I need you to read through Lacus' statement again. She mentioned a guy called Kira Hibiki," he said, "run that name through the invitation list for me."

"Why?" Meyrin frowned, glancing through the statement. "How's he involved?"

"I don't know," he shrugged his shoulders, "but I intend to find out."

* * *

The sky was still gray when Kira slipped out of the house. He stood on the stone steps outside his door and blew on his hands to keep warm. The morning sun hadn't risen yet and the air was cold and still. Hands shoved deep into the pockets of his jeans, he descended the steps and stepped out onto the pavement. As usual, the neighbourhood remained silent and empty.

He turned right and strolled down the street, his pace measured and even, his breath fogging in the frigid air. He passed four other houses and at the corner of the first, paused to gaze at the diner. The lights were already ablaze inside and his sharp eyes detected movement through the well-polished windows. Every morning, he would continue on, walking straight across the vacant carpark that separated the first house from the diner. But today, he turned around and headed back the way he had come. He passed his own apartment and continued walking for half an hour, until he reached the main road which intersected his little street.

Life at the main road began to pick up a little. There were more cars on the road and more people on the pavements - morning joggers, old ladies with their dogs, shopkeepers opening up shop, deliverymen on their rounds.

Kira needed breakfast, so he hailed a cab. The driver was a plump old man who grinned at him cheerfully when he slid into the back seat. "Where to, young fella?"

"Just drop me somewhere in the city," Kira replied, gazing out of the window.

"Gotcha." The driver stepped on the accelerator and the cab began to move. There was silence for a minute before the jolly cab driver began to strike conversation. "Why the sullen face, man? What happened?" He glanced at Kira through the rearview mirror. "You got kicked out by your girlfriend?"

Kira ignored him.

"Ah," he sighed, exhaling a deep breath, "don't worry about it. Your girl will get over it soon. What are you going to do in the city so early this morning? You don't look like you've got any business in the city. You know, people like us, all these people in our neighbourhood-" he waved a hand at the streets whizzing by, "-we've got no business with the city and all those rich people that live and work there. They own big houses, man. Mansions. You've seen those giants? And they've got these large offices and sleek cars, and hire people like us to do their laundry and clean their mansions. Man, people like us, people in our neighbourhood, we own these tiny apartments and ride our bicycles to work. If we're a little luckier-" He gave a hoot of laughter, "-we'll own a taxi. Like me, man. God, sometimes I wish I could drive one of those sleek cars. Be even better if I could sit in one of those – what do they call it again? Limousines? A pretty babe on each side and a truckload of money. Now that's the life we all want, ain't that right?"

Kira didn't bother to reply. The cab driver shrugged when he got no response and gave up all attempts at conversation.

The silence gave Kira enough peace to continue gazing out of the cab window, watching the neighbourhood flash past. The streets were peppered with grocery shops, diners and cafes. Most of them were owned by people living in the neighbourhood. Like Flay and Sai. They didn't earn much, but at least they had regular customers and a steady income. Aside from shops, the rest of the street was choked up with small, cramped little apartments, set close to each other. They were all that the people here could afford, plus maybe a dog or a cat. The people in his neighbourhood were poor and they liked to complain about it. He heard it all the time when he had breakfast at Flay's. It was typical morning conversation. They enjoyed comparing the meager things that they had.

Kira never joined in any of those conversations. Flay attributed it to his anti-social personality but that was only half the truth. The other half was that he had _nothing_ to compare.

* * *

Athrun had just returned from an extremely late lunch, when the phone on his desk began to ring incessantly. He banged his fist on the bottom of the receiver without looking up from his report and caught the phone receiver as it bounced upwards. "Zala," he responded curtly.

"_You owe me a coffee and a salad."_

Athrun sighed, pressing his thumb and index finger to his nose bridge in an attempt to stifle the approaching headache. "Not now, Miriallia." He waved his pen exasperatedly.

"_Okay. Then I suppose you don't want the results of the chemical trace now either."_

Athrun froze for a second, then covered the receiver with a hand and yelled in the direction of Meyrin's desk, "Meyrin, I need a coffee and a salad right now!" He turned his attention back to the phone and heard Miriallia Haw chuckle. "_Be down in five minutes, Detective."_

To be more exact, Miriallia Haw took only a minute and a half to descend from her crime scene lab and sweep into the conference room. Meyrin hadn't even returned from the cafeteria with the coffee and salad she had requested.

The brown-haired forensic scientist brandished a manila file in Athrun's face exuberantly, "You owe me big time, Detective Zala."

"Yes, I know," Athrun directed her towards the chair at the head of the conference table and pushed her into it unceremoniously. "How could I forget when you remind me every single time we meet?" He sank into the chair on her right, "Okay, Miriallia. Let's have it."

Miriallia opened the file and laid it out in front of her. "I know I took a long time figuring out the chemical trace, but I have a valid reason." She glanced pointedly at Athrun who pretended he didn't see the look she shot him. "Turns out that the chemical trace is a combination of various substances. So I had to run it through multiple tests to decipher the chemical codes."

"Let's see what we have here. There is a chemical substance resembling erythropoietin, otherwise known as EPO. This sample is highly glycosylated as compared to the common EPO, hence resulting in a higher half-life-"

Athrun interrupted her with a frustrated wave of the hand. "_English_, Miriallia, you've got to speak to us in _English._"

Miriallia Haw rolled her eyes, but she dutifully set about explaining the chemical jargon she had been using. "EPO is a type of hormone which speeds up our wound-healing process. The sample of EPO we have is one that has been altered to contain more carbohydrates, which gives it a longer half-life-" Seeing the perplexed looks on the faces of her audience, she quickly changed tactics, "half-life refers to how long the EPO is able to survive in our bloodstream. The longer the half-life, the longer it remains in our blood, which means that this new form of EPO is much more efficient when it comes to wound-healing simply because it exists in our bloodstream for a longer time. It's able to cut down the time it takes for our wounds to heal by about half. Plus, EPO is also a performance-enhancing drug because it improves oxygen delivery, which in turn increases the user's endurance. Think of the drugs that athletes take."

Lunamaria quirked an eyebrow at her. "So what you're saying is that this guy heals faster than normal people?"

"Bingo," Miriallia grinned, "and that's just the tip of the iceberg. There is also trace of a modified form of epinephrine, more commonly known as adrenalin. This sample has a different structure containing more binding sites-" She paused as the eyes staring at her clouded over with puzzlement. "Okay, never mind. What I'm saying is that this new form of adrenalin works better and faster."

"So, this guy doesn't just heal faster. He reacts quicker too?" Nicol asked doubtfully.

"Exactly. Faster reflexes, quicker responses, greater stamina," Miriallia winked as she counted them off her fingers. "I've also got the chemical makeup of a steroid that-"

"Stop, Miriallia, please," Athrun raised a hand, shaking his head in an attempt to still the chemical symbols and jargon swimming in his head, "just sum up what you've gathered from the blood sample and tell us what we are dealing with."

The brunette shrugged her shoulders. "Basically, this guy's got all sorts of stuff messing around with his body systems. His nervous system, his circulatory system, his endocrine system, his immune system-" She pointed a finger as her head, "-even his brain. You name it, he's got it."

"Man," Shinn shook his head, "What kind of trauma has this poor guy undergone? Why all the drugs?"

"I don't think our guy is on drugs," Miriallia said, shaking her head, "the effects I'm describing aren't temporary effects. They aren't drug-induced. I'm guessing that genetic manipulation is involved."

"Genetic manipulation?" Dearka made a face, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "Like in sci-fi movies? _What_ are we dealing with here, man?"

"A superhuman, that's what," Miriallia summed up.

* * *

"That one." Sting pointed a finger across the bar. They followed his gaze and saw a man in T-shirt and jeans at the other end of the bar counter, sipping from a shot glass filled with bourbon.

"Okay." Stellar pushed herself off her bar stool and turned to flash them a grin. "Place your bets, gentlemen."

"Five minutes. Five bucks." Auel pulled a five from his wallet and waved it in her face. Stellar's full lips, shiny from her lip gloss, formed a beautiful pout, "You're underestimating me."

Sting extracted a ten. "Okay, angel. Three minutes. Ten bucks."

Stellar's eyes narrowed dangerously.

"One minute," Kira smiled as he removed a twenty from his own wallet.

Stellar's eyes lit up. "See?" she whirled on her other teammates and made a face. "Now that's what I call 'trust'! If I can make it back in one minute, you guys-" she pointed a finger at Auel and Sting, "-are going to have to pay up!"

She turned with a flick of her hair and took a deep breath, then surged into the crowd. The bar was teeming with people. Electro music was playing so loudly that the walls were pulsating with each thumping beat. Lights flashed and spun wildly. They watched as Stellar wove her way lithely through the crowd of gyrating bodies. She even paused to dance with a young man, grinding her hips against his and turning her head to flash them a challenging grin. "One minute," Auel scoffed. He tossed an absurd glance in Kira's direction, "You're going to lose that twenty."

Kira merely leaned back against the counter and smiled.

She slid out of the crowd, eyes fixed on her target. They watched her sidle up to the bar and bump against the counter, falling conveniently into the lap of the surprised man. The expression on her face was full of embarrassment but it quickly changed into a coy look. It was a flawless performance. The guy seemed particularly interested in what lay beneath her skirt and blouse and soon his hands were all over, squeezing and stroking.

Out of the corner of his eye, Kira saw Auel move. His pale blue-haired companion rose from his seat, eyes glinting dangerously. Kira recognized the signs – the same murderous look that came over his teammate whenever they were on the hunt. Before Auel could take another step, Kira had a firm grip on his wrist. "Sit down," he hissed. Auel stared at him in disbelief.

"That asshole touched her," He snarled.

"Sit down," Kira repeated.

"I said, that asshole touched her!" Auel's voice had escalated into a screech and they were attracting odd glances from the other bar patrons despite the booming music.

Kira glared hard at him and saw Auel hesitate a beat but he didn't back down. Kira nodded at Sting who took his cue and rested a restraining hand on Auel's shoulder. "I said _sit_ down," Kira muttered, his voice low and dangerous. He felt a slight give in Auel's stance and yanked him down hard onto the bar stool. Sting had a firm grasp on his shoulders. Auel was livid.

"Have a little more faith," he released his hold on Auel's wrist and replied coolly, "Stellar can hold her ground."

He swiveled around in his bar stool just in time to see Stellar sauntering back towards them. She was grinning but she frowned a little when she came closer, sensing the tension in the air. "Now what are you boys fighting about?" She sidled up against Kira who moved over a little so that she could perch on half of his bar stool.

"Nothing," Kira smiled, even as Auel turned away and glared at the table, draining his own glass in one furious gulp.

Stellar rolled her eyes and gave Auel an affectionate nudge with her shoulder. "Cheer up, honey," she reached into her knee-length boots and drew out a leather wallet. "Look what I got," she winked at him, then glanced at her watch, "and in only fifty-four seconds too. Now, normally, I would be obliged to make you pay up. But today, let us thank-" She paused and flipped open the wallet, glancing at the ID in the transparent pocket. "- a very generous Mr. Ian Brown for buying us our drinks tonight."

She drew out a fifty from the wallet and slapped it down onto the counter. "Brandon!" She yelled at the bartender, "another round of drinks and keep the tip!"

"I don't want any drinks paid by that asshole's money!" Auel snapped, banging his glass down on the table. It shattered from the force and earned them a few glares from neighbouring customers. The bartender looked impressed though. He collected up the fifty Stellar had left on the counter. "At least your tip is big enough to cover the cost of the glass," he winked at Stellar, who generously drew out another fifty from the stolen wallet. "Keep the rest," she grinned, stuffing it into the bartender's hand.

Then she turned to Auel and raised an eyebrow questioningly. "Did you miss your anger management class?" she teased, only to earn a glare from Auel.

"You didn't have to let him touch you."

"Well."

"Well?" Auel repeated incredulously.

"Let's just say he's not getting off that easy," Stellar winked. She nodded towards the man. "Just wait and see."

They turned just as the man in T-shirt and jeans got up from his bar stool and made an obscene gesture in Stellar's direction. Stellar responded with a seductive smile and wave and the man began tottering towards them. One step. Two steps. And then he was down.

The man just crumpled and fell into a heap on the ground. Several people around him yelped. Others shrieked. Two burly bouncers in black shouldered their way through the crowd and dragged the fallen man away. The whole incident didn't take more than a minute and soon the crowd was bursting with energy again. As if the man had never been there.

"Beat that," Stellar challenged, her eyes twinkling with amusement. Auel burst into laughter. "Shit," he chortled, "what did you put in his drink?"

Their female teammate shrugged and grinned slyly, "Just a sleeping pill."

Sting tousled her blonde hair and Kira swung an arm around her waist protectively. "That's our girl," he nodded, then raised his eyebrows smugly at Auel, "told you our angel could hold her own."

"Bah," Auel jeered, grinning mischievously, "That was just luck. The guy was a dumb target. A sitting duck. I bet she couldn't do it again."

"Jerk. Bet you I can."

"Prove it."

"I just did. If you're so good, why don't you do it?"

Kira shook his head as he watched them banter to and fro. He exchanged an exasperated look with Sting, who merely laughed at their antics. "Okay, okay," Sting raised a hand and pointed in the direction of a man in a business suit, sitting alone at the far end of the bar. "That's the next target. Work your magic on that guy, Stellar."

She squinted at the man, then rolled her eyes and sagged back against Kira. "No point. That guy won't fall for it."

"How would you know?"

"He's a regular here. Never once laid an eye on me. He's always ogling at the male strippers here." She paused, then a mischievous glint lit up her amber eyes. She glanced at Auel and raked her eyes over him. "But I bet he'll be taken in by you, Auel. Since you're so good, why don't you do it?"

"I could get his money in five seconds."

"Bullshit. That's impossible."

"Not if I punch the daylights out of him and just take it from his back pocket."

"Don't draw attention to yourself," Kira admonished, smiling. Auel pouted in response and Stellar clapped her hands eagerly. "That's it," she crowed with excitement, "use that look on him."

"I will not-"

"Unless of course you're too chicken?"

Kira had never seen Auel back down from a challenge and he wasn't about to start. He narrowed his eyes at Stellar and they glared at each other challengingly, a silent battle passing between them. Then he snatched up Sting's glass, downed the liquor in one gulp and pushed himself off his bar stool.

"If that asshole fondles my butt, I'm going to smash his face in," Auel breathed, before stalking away through the crowd.

The bartender returned with a second round of drinks. He slipped a plain white coaster towards each of them and plunked down a glass on each coaster, glass cubes tinkling merrily. "Thanks to Mr. Ian Brown," Stellar raised her glass and tapped it against Sting's. "Drink to your fill, and let's sit back and watch some entertainment."

Kira smiled to himself as he lifted his own glass. He was about to take a sip from it when he caught sight of the tiny scribble on the edge of his coaster.

_HQ. Now._

He knew what it meant. He had seen it numerous times – on receipts handed to him by cashiers, on napkins in diners, on notes pinned to his door. He left his drink untouched on the counter and stood. Immediately, his teammates sensed the change in him and they turned towards him curiously.

"He wants to see us," Kira explained simply, "Now."

Following his lead, both his teammates left their stools and they entered the crowd on the dance floor, gliding through it stealthily towards Auel and his target. Auel was talking to the man in the business suit, a charming grin on his face. The man had a hand resting seductively on his thigh.

"Get Auel." Kira glanced over his shoulder at Sting who approached the unlikely couple and swung a possessive arm around Auel's shoulders. "There you are," he exclaimed dramatically, then smiled at the surprised businessman. "Sorry, man. This guy's taken." Without a backward glance, he turned Auel away and steered him towards Kira and Stellar who were waiting near the exit.

He shot them a questioning look but a simple nod from Kira cleared things up. "Well," he brandished a brown leather wallet as they stepped out of the warmth of the bar and into the cold night. "We can share the spoils on the way to HQ."

Athrun shrugged on his jacket and grabbed his briefcase. Heading around the table, he crossed his office, put a hand on the knob of his door and glanced behind him. He was tempted to stay the night. There were loads to do – more brainstorming, more analysis, more reports to read. More pieces of the jigsaw puzzle to fit together.

But the inky black sky outside his window was a steady reminder that it was late. Besides, he knew what Lacus would say if she found out he had stayed the night in the office and no doubt, she would find out. He turned the knob and had just opened his door when a flustered Lunamaria collided into him.

"Whoa there, Luna," he steadied her with a hand, which tightened around her shoulder when he saw the tensed, anxious look on her face.

"I've got seriously bad news, Chief."

_Author's note: I think the transition between each section is a little rough. Hmm… may work on it again in my free time. Anyways, review, review, review! I think there'll be a little more action in the next chapter. Working on it!_


	25. 24

_Author's note: Here's the next chapter. A little short though. Working on the next one. Hope it'll be complete soon!_

**Chapter 24:**

The narrow backstreet had transformed into a media circus by the time Athrun steered his car into the neighbourhood. Media vans were parked in all angles along the road, tyres on and off the sidewalks. Athrun eased his car between two unmarked media vans and killed the engine. Camera flashes went off as soon as he stepped out of the car and microphones were thrust into his face. The noise level became unbearable as reporters shouted questions at him. He kept his head and eyes down and left his subordinates to fend off the onslaught.

The small road had been completely barricade off by vehicles and he had to hike towards the carpark that flanked the rear of the brick building on foot, weaving between cars. The carpark, about the size of a basketball court, was jammed with half a dozen police cruisers, their emergency lights spinning wildly and lighting up the neighbourhood in eerie flashes of red and white.

Aside from patrol cars, the only other vehicle in sight was a beat-up truck, bordered with yellow crime scene tape. Athrun headed for it, stepping around the hoods and trunks of the vehicles, and shouldered his way through the crowd of police officers and crime scene investigators congregated around the cordoned off area. There were few streetlights about, but the entire carpark was bathed in harsh white light from the headlights of the police cruisers. In the bright lighting, Athrun caught sight of the silhouettes in the front seat of the truck and felt his gut clench.

He drew up level with the door of the passenger seat and forced himself to look into the truck, only to regret it instantly.

Officer Brian Hutson had been shot in the forehead. A single clean shot that had killed him instantly. He was slumped back in the seat, his head turned towards the door, gazing through the wound-down window with open eyes. A vacant stare that appeared to see right through Athrun. Across him in the driver seat, Officer Gregory Samson had sagged forward and his head was resting against the steering wheel. Like his partner, his face was turned towards the passenger window and Athrun saw the same bullet hole between his eyes.

Both men killed by a single, perfect shot to the forehead. An expert. _What are we dealing with? A superhuman. _A shudder ran up Athrun's spine as he recalled Miriallia's words. Athrun was no forensic scientist, but judging from the extent of the scorched marks circling the wounds, he could tell that they had been shot at close range. Point blank. Plus the open window and the direction in which both of them were turned towards. They had wound down the window to talk to someone.

_Why? Who had they seen? Someone suspicious? Someone they knew? _

Athrun had specifically warned them before sending them out. He had emphasized the cunningness of these criminals. He had told them to trust no one. Officer Hutson and Officer Samson were two of the most cautious and alert detectives he had on his team. He had trained them personally and ensured that he had drilled that lesson into them. _So why?_

"You're going to ruin the evidence collection like that."

He whirled around and came face to face with Miriallia Haw. The brunette was dressed in a crumpled tee, jeans and jacket, and her brown shoulder-length hair was unkempt. She had evidently been rudely yanked from the warmth of her bed.

She gestured at him grimly. "I wouldn't do that if I were you."

It was only then that Athrun realised that he had punched the passenger door of the truck in a fit of anger. His fist was still in contact with the cool metal, and he hastily pulled it away. He ignored the nervous glances that the other police officers were giving him.

"I want this truck taken apart, Miriallia," he bit out.

"I intend to," Miriallia's mouth was set in a grim line. "For now, what I can tell you is that the estimated time of death is between 11 p.m. to 1 a.m. last night." She paused and cast her eyes away to look at the ground, though she quickly caught herself and shifted her gaze back to Athrun. But she wasn't quick enough. Athrun knew what had passed through her mind. _11 p.m._ He had been at home with his house guests at that time, sipping beer and eating pizza in an attempt to pull himself together, while his men were gunned down in a dilapidated carpark.

"The cause of death for both men is a shot to the head. Close range. Instantly fatal. Same for the woman upstairs." Miriallia nodded over her shoulder in the direction of the brick building. "You should go and take a look."

Athrun nodded and watched Miriallia direct her crime scene techs to dust the edge of the window for fingerprints.

"There is a hidden video camera mounted in the dashboard," Athrun said and Miriallia turned to give him a surprised look. "I told Greg and Brian to get it installed in case… something… happened." Miriallia nodded and snapped her fingers at one of the technicians who quickly slipped open the passenger door with gloved hands and leaned over Officer Hutson's body to search the dashboard.

Athrun was drawn to the faces of the fallen officers, both whitewashed by the bright headlights of the surrounding vehicles. The weeping wounds in their heads stood out in stark relief against their ghastly white faces. He tore his eyes away and headed around the brick building to its front entrance. The front street in was a media hubbub and residents from the residential building across the road had too gathered around, dressed in night robes and jackets over pyjamas.

Athrun entered the front door and stepped into a scantily furnished lobby filled with people – police officers, crime scene techs and furious tenants who had been rudely awakened. He pushed and shoved his way towards the lift, which was crammed full. A young officer stepped out and Athrun thanked him with a polite nod.

The lift stopped on the third floor and the lift passengers spilled out. Athrun was last and he stood on the landing and glanced down both ends of the corridor. It had only been slightly more than a day since he had walked down the very same passageway with Shinn and Luna by his side. That day, the corridor had been empty and he could see stains along the walls and the threadbare carpet.

But what a difference this was. Every door on the floor was open and stuffed with grim-faced police officers questioning bewildered tenants.

Athrun turned right. He spotted Meyrin and Nicol in the first doorway with a nervous fidgety woman in a bathrobe. "When you're done here," Athrun laid a hand on Nicol's shoulder to gain his attention, "take a couple of officers to the opposite building and question the residents there. Someone might have heard or seen something through their window." Nicol nodded.

The door to the third apartment was ajar and barricaded by yellow tape. The lights inside were off and in the gloom, Athrun spotted the still motionless shape on the ground just a few feet away from the door.

He slipped under the tape and crouched by the dead woman's body. There was a bullet hole in her chest slightly to her left, exactly where her heart was positioned. _A perfect shot again._ Her open eyes were staring up at the ceiling, her mouth was open wide in a grotesque shape. As if she wanted to scream but the bullet had killed her before she could.

Athrun glanced around the apartment from where he was crouching. Nothing seemed out of place. The little house was still as clustered as he remembered it but there were no broken furniture or upset cardboard boxes. All windows were intact. No signs of a struggle or a break-in. He turned to the door and looked at the chain and bolt thoughtfully.

Then he turned back to the victim. She was dressed in a filthy threadbare dressing robe, loosely tied around her waist. Underneath, she had on a cream coloured nightgown. _She had been asleep when the killer had arrived_, Athrun realised. He stood and walked towards what he guessed was the bedroom, passing technicians who were stalking the apartment, dusting for fingerprints and scrabbling all over the floor in search of evidence.

His hunch was confirmed when he saw the unmade bed with its covers trailing on the floor and the pillows askew. _She had been awakened in the middle of the night, then_ _let her murderer in through her door. Why? Was it someone she had known?_

"Boss." Athrun turned around in the doorway of the bedroom to see Shinn stepping under the crime scene tape at the entrance and heading towards him.

"Update me."

"The woman was found by a man called Herman Brown. He's her client. They were supposed to meet at the hotel down the street for their scheduled eight p.m. rendezvous. But when she didn't turn up or pick up his calls, Brown came up here to look for her. He banged the door until the neighbour from the fourth apartment came out and told him to shut up. That was when he tried the door and found it unlocked. The moment he found her dead, he called the police," Shinn glanced up from the notebook he was reading off, "I've got Brown downstairs in the lobby if you want to speak to him. He's pale as death. Dearka's watching him right now."

"Okay. You've got his statement?"

"Yes."

"What about the neighbour that came out?"

"Luna's working on it."

"Okay."

"Do you want to speak to Brown?"

"Won't be necessary. Get someone to send him home."

"Got it."

Athrun followed Shinn out of the apartment and waited until the lift was considerably empty before taking it back down to the ground floor. He exited from the front entrance of the building and went around it again to the carpark in the back. The media hadn't moved an inch and the coroner's van had joined the party.

Athrun trudged towards a squad car with its passenger door wide open and sank down into the seat, watching the crime scene technicians doing their job in the beat-up truck. He could see the faint outlines of both officers through the windscreen.

Sitting alone in the police cruiser, he realised that the temperature had dropped. His breath was fogging in the cold frigid air. Police officers and crime scene techs in the carpark had pulled on thick jackets over their uniforms and clothes. Athrun realised then that he had left his own jacket in his car. But he couldn't get himself to move and retrieve it. He didn't have the energy to walk, least of all deal with the media onslaught awaiting him. So he sat where he was, letting the cold seep into his flesh and bones, and hopefully, numb his senses.

_Author's note: I only have one thing to say: Review, review, review!_


	26. 25

_Author's note: Hey there. Here's the next chapter. Sorry for the delay. I know there was a little strife in the comments, but I appreciate the criticisms (because that helps me learn. This is the first time I'm writing a thriller/action, so hope you could cut me a little slack. But point taken, I'm learning to refine my plot :D) as well as the commendations (really, really appreciate your support and speaking up for me. I'll always be grateful for that :D). So, anyways, hope you enjoy this chapter. It's a little long-winded, I know. But I hope it doesn't confuse you (although it did confuse me when I was writing it. Oops. O.o)_

**Chapter 25:**

"No one heard the gunshots," Lunamaria said, "so obviously, the guy used a silencer."

"Guys," Nicol said.

Luna turned to glance at him, "What?"

"Guys," he repeated. "There was more than one." He picked up a small tape lying in front of him and waved it so that everyone could see it. He gestured at Athrun with the tape. "It's from the video camera that Athrun had Officers Hutson and Samson install in the dashboard of the truck."

He slapped it back onto the conference table and picked up a remote control. Pointing it at the projector situated in the middle of the table, he said, "I watched it with the crime scene techs. We've cut it down to the essential portions. It's not pretty, so..." He left the sentence hanging as he pressed a button on the remote and the screen came to life. Chairs swivelled around as their occupants turned their attention to the screen.

The picture was grainy, as expected from a low-quality camcorder, but clear enough for them to make out the shapes in the footage. It showed the car park from an angle, the focus was on the entrance of the car park.

Nicol pressed the 'play' button and for several seconds, the image on the screen stayed the same and only the soft breathing of the officers could be heard. "Wait for it," Nicol whispered. Then Athrun saw what Nicol was referring to – the dark shape of a van steering through the entrance of the car park. It loomed into the view of the camera and Athrun watched it reverse and park, diagonally across the car park.

The tension in the conference room elevated. No one made a sound. Athrun knew he was looking at the murderers who had shot his colleagues in cold blood.

"_Keep your eyes peeled," _Officer Samson's voice came through the speakers and reverberated around the conference room. It sounded scratchy and high-pitched, marred by background noise.

There was no change in the video footage for a minute. Then a person appeared from the side of the van. _Was it a man or a woman? _Athrun found himself squinting at the screen. The person was running in the direction of the camera, towards the truck. Passing under a nearby streetlamp, Athrun saw that it was a woman. _But wait, no, it wasn't one person._ It was two. A man was chasing her. The woman was screaming but the background noise had distorted what she was saying.

"_What the hell?" _It was Officer Hutson who spoke first. "_Should we go out and take a look?"_

"_No..." _Officer Samson sounded hesitant. "_No, stay put first. Let's wait and see."_

The woman reached for the hood of the truck but was yanked around by the man. They wrestled for a second or two before the man hit her and she collapsed against the truck's hood.

"_He just hit her!"_

"_Wait, it could be a trick."_

"_What sort of trick is that?"_

"_I-I don't know. Just hold on, Brian."_

The woman was now very close to the hidden camera but the dark night and the lack of light obscured her face. All Athrun could see was her silhouette, which scrambled around the hood and disappeared from the view of the camera. But he could hear her screams now and the sound of her fists pounding against the passenger door of the truck.

"_Hold on-"_

"_I'm trying to wind down the window."_

"_Hurry up! The guy's getting to her."_

The camera remained stationary, aimed at the van across the car park. Both the woman and the man were out of the camera. From the sounds of urgent fumbling and the sudden increase in background noise, Athrun guessed that the officers must have wound down the window and he knew what was coming next.

"_Help me, please! He's trying to kill me!"_

"_You! Back off. Don't say we didn't warn you. Leave the lady alone. I'm only going to say it one more time: back-"_

Officer Hutson was cut off by a double bang emitted from the speakers and ricocheted off the walls of the conference room. It wasn't very loud, which confirmed Luna's point that a silencer had been used. Nevertheless, it was loud enough to shock the entire conference room into stunned silence.

The video continued to play, showing the backs of the man and woman who returned to the van and the vehicle pulling out of the parking lot out of the view of the camera. But Athrun was barely registering it.

When the screen went black, there was no movement in the conference room. Athrun sat where he was, frozen by the brutality of what he had just watched. It took a minute or two for the shock to subside and eventually he realised that he was holding his breath. He released it and turned slowly to take in the disbelieving faces of his team.

"Is that the end of the video?" He asked Nicol. He realised his voice was a little shaky and he cleared his throat. "What happens after that?"

"Exactly ten minutes and twenty-two seconds after the end of this footage, the same van was recorded again. It was shown to be leaving the carpark. After that, it's just another fifty minutes of nothing. No vehicles recorded entering or leaving up till the end of the tape." Nicol replied. "There were three other tapes found in the truck, showing footage before the incident. But there's nothing suspicious on those tapes. Officers Hutson and Samson were changing the tapes regularly, so they've captured pretty much everything that happened until they were..." Nicol took a deep breath, then said simply, "...killed."

"Okay."

"So these guys were the ones who killed the woman too?" Meyrin asked quietly.

"Most likely," Nicol nodded, "given that they left the scene only ten minutes later, instead of right away."

"Do we have any witnesses to confirm that?"

"Unfortunately not," Luna shrugged her shoulders, "we've knocked on every door in the vicinity. No one heard or saw anything suspicious."

"What about the van they were using?" Athrun took over the remote control and rewound the tape. He paused it when the van was in view, parked in its lot. "Do we have any leads on it? Can the crime scene techs zoom in and identify the licence plate number? Anyone reported a stolen van?"

"No," Nicol said, "and no. To both your questions. Firstly, it's too dark and the image quality is bad. We've tried but all we got was a jumble of blurred symbols. Secondly, we've cross-referenced all reports of stolen vehicles over the past week. There's been no match."

There was silence again. It was obvious that everyone was attempting to process the information they were receiving and fit the facts they had into a logical account. Eventually Meyrin sighed and said, "Well, at least we gathered from the video that it's not the act of one person, but two."

"Maybe three, or four," Athrun corrected, glancing at her, "we can't be sure of that. I'm guessing that there's at least one person in the van to serve as backup in case things didn't go as they planned."

"Okay," Dearka said, "so let's look at the Big Three." He counted them off his fingers. "Opportunity, means, motive."

" 'Means' is easy," Nicol pointed out, "One single gunshot for all three victims. In the head or in the heart."

Shinn stood up and went over to a whiteboard covered in Polaroid photos and scribbles. With a marker, he scrawled a large 'Means = gunshot to head / heart'.

"Good," Dearka nodded, "so 'opportunity'. We just saw how they set up Officers Hutson and Samson – by pretending to be in distress. What we don't know is how they got through the door of the woman." Shinn wrote down 'Opportunity = in distress + ?' on the whiteboard.

"Maybe they set her up too," Luna pointed out. "Maybe they pretended to be someone she knew. Like one of her clients or a neighbour or something." Rubbing out the question mark with his palm, Shinn replaced it with the words 'someone she knew?'

"Right, so let's look at the last and most important one: motive."

"Here's the thing," Nicol frowned, "the motives are unclear. Obviously, they killed Officers Hutson and Samson to get to the woman. So, motive for killing them is clear. But the big question is why kill the woman? Because she knew the identity of the infiltrators of the Clyne Mansion? How? Her son was the infiltrator? If so, the son killed his own mother?"

"Maybe these the infiltration at the party and the woman's murder aren't related."

Athrun turned to look at Meyrin who was frowning, toying with a pen with her fingers.

"So," Shinn drawled out. "We find a blood sample containing chemicals allowing us to believe our criminal is a 'superhuman', trace it to a woman who claims that she sold her son, and turns up later murdered by what appears to be a 'superhuman'. And you think these two crimes are unrelated?" He raised a sceptical eyebrow at his teammate, "I don't think so."

Meyrin shrugged, "I don't know. This is just too-" She waved her pen around in the air, searching for a correct word to describe the situation. "-too overwhelming. It's stretching my imagination way too far," she concluded, with another shrug and a frown.

"Maybe it's a coincidence," Luna winced. She didn't look like she believed in what she was saying. "Maybe the woman was killed for another reason. Say, the wife of one of her clients finds out that her husband is cheating on her. So she hires someone to kill the third party."

"Maybe a professional fixer," Dearka offered, "a killer for hire. That would explain the perfection in which the murder is executed."

Athrun thought about it. It wasn't impossible, but he had seen and done enough in his law enforcement career to know that coincidences didn't occur as frequently as people thought they did. As he stared at the whiteboard across the conference room, he knew that this was no coincidence and he said so to his subordinates who were clustered around the conference table.

"Okay," Shinn said, "so let's assume it's not a coincidence. From what we gathered from the victim's statement, she sold her son to a man who turned up on her doorstep twenty years ago and offered her an irresistible sum of money. So, maybe this mysterious stranger is the mastermind behind the infiltration. He's using the woman's son and he's afraid she would be able to identify him."

"Possible." Athrun pointed his pen in Shinn's direction and nodded. "Think about what spawned this whole investigation."

"The drug that Siegel Clyne's company created."

"Exactly," Athrun nodded again, "let's not get distracted by recent happenings. All these incidents-" He sketched a circle in the air with his pen to encompass the entire whiteboard. "- the infiltration at the corporation, the break-in at Lacus' homecoming party, the blood sample we found, the woman we traced it to and her 'superhuman' murderer. It all stems from science, from chemicals, from the pharmaceutical industry."

"So you're saying that we're dealing with illegal human experimentation?"

"Possible," Athrun said again.

Shinn scribbled a large 'Illegal human experimentation' with the marker and added a question mark.

Athrun glanced at Meyrin pointedly. "What about that name Lacus mentioned in her statement? Any leads?"

"No," she shook her head. "The name Kira Hibiki doesn't appear anywhere in the invitation list."

"So that's our guy," Dearka said, leaning back into his chair, "let's bring him in for questioning."

Meyrin turned to look at Dearka and shook her head again. "Here's the problem," she said, "I've run the name through the national database and there are no records of him. No address, no telephone number, no bank loans, no licensed vehicle. Nothing. He's either not a citizen here or that's just an alias."

"I glanced through Lacus' statement," she added, "and Lacus mentioned that he was from DEX enterprises. Yes, there were guests from DEX enterprises that night but none of them were called Kira Hibiki."

"Do we have their photographs?" Athrun questioned.

"From the party? No, unless Nicol is able to pull up footages from the security cameras-"

"Only footage from the beginning of the party," Nicol interrupted. "The cameras were 'fried' during the infiltration. They screwed up the whole system so all I've managed to save are some random footages of the party at the start."

"Okay," Meyrin said, "and I can pull up some photos from the corporate website of DEX enterprises. See if any of the faces look familiar to Lacus."

"Do that," Athrun ordered, "and show her the two people in the carpark footage too. Let's see if she recognises them."

* * *

With a casual flick of his wrist, Rau sent the glass vial shattering into the opposite wall. Tiny shards of glass fell tinkling to the floor. Kira heard the sharp intake of breath from his companions but he remained impassive as Rau turned to him.

"Do you know what that is?" Rau's voice was dripping with sarcasm.

Kira didn't reply and Rau didn't ask again. They stared at each other across the desk, Kira's eyes emotionless and Rau's cold and impersonal.

Finally, Stellar spoke up and broke the awkward silence. "It's the drug we retrieved from the Clyne Mansion, sir," she muttered.

Kira bit the inside of his cheek to stop himself from asking her to shut up. He knew they were treading on dangerous grounds. One wrong word and they could end up in deep shit. He had been there, done that.

His dark amethyst eyes caught sight of the shattered glass vial in the corner. Something wasn't right. Whatever the glass vial contained was precious to Rau. That was the only reason why he would send them for it and his careless treatment towards it could only mean one thing – it wasn't real.

They had been tricked.

As soon as the realisation dawned on Kira, he knew they had failed their mission and Rau didn't take failures lightly.

"Where is the real drug?" He asked quietly, eyes betraying no emotion. He was aware of the perplexed glances that his teammates were casting him but he kept his eyes fixed on Rau. _Never take your eyes off the threat. _His first lesson back in the facility.

Rau's lips stretched into a wide grin. "I always knew you were sharp," he smiled, "quick as whip. My best assassin so far."

Kira ignored the compliment.

"I don't know where the real thing is," Rau continued. The smile had faded and was now replaced with an annoyed frown. "And even if I sent an undercover team, my guess is that the outcome will be unsuccessful." His fingers drummed an impatient rhythm on the edge of his desk. "I don't have time to entertain another failure."

"So we're going to do this differently," He settled back into his leather chair and interlaced his long fingers, "I'm proposing an exchange, a trade. I want to swap someone for the drug. The _real _drug."

"And who are you referring to?"

Rau opened his desk drawer with a hand and drew out a white card, tossing it across his desk. It landed inches away from Kira, who broke the eye contact between them to glance down at it. It was a Polaroid photo showing a black convertible. There were two people in the picture. The first was a man standing on the driver's side of the vehicle. He had one hand on the door handle and the other was removing magenta wraparound shades to expose emerald eyes. Navy blue hair was his other distinguishing feature.

He was looking over the top of the convertible at the second person in the photo - a woman, with waist-length pink hair, but unlike her male companion, her back was to the camera.

From the angle of the shot and the grainy texture of the photograph, the photograph had probably been taken from a distance away. Probably by one of the teams Rau had sent out to gather intel.

Kira stared at the photograph, unable to tear his eyes away. He recognised the man. He had been leaning against the door of the Clyne Mansion the night they had broke into it. And as for the woman, Kira had a pretty good idea who she was, and he didn't like where the conversation was going.

"Who is he?" Auel's voice broke through his reverie and he glanced up again to look at Rau.

"His name is Athrun Zala. He is the chief of the Special Unit and Siegel Clyne's adopted son. He's not one to be trifled with, so don't let your guard down around him."

Kira remembered those sharp green eyes scanning the area, wary and alert. _This guy was trouble._

"So, we're capturing the man?" Sting asked.

"No, I don't want him," Rau shook his head. He tossed another photograph onto the desk. This time, the camera was pointing straight at the woman. Her head was half-turned towards the camera, as though someone had just called out to her and she was turning around. Kira recognised her immediately. The same flowing pink hair, soft blue-grey eyes and that familiar smile.

"I want _her_."

_Author's note: There you go. If you're confused by anything, especially in that extremely long convo in the conference room, just drop me a comment, and I'll do my bets to clear it up in the next chapter! So, review, review, review!_


	27. 26

**Chapter 26:**

The lights dimmed and somewhere, a piano began to play. Lacus took a step forward, paused, took another and paused again. The sweet, melancholic melody drifted towards her. Then she saw it - the first glitter and she raised her hand, extending a delicate finger towards it. It began to snow as sparkles fell all around her, twinkling like tiny stars within reach. Arms outstretched, face uplifted, she spun around, laughing pleasantly.

She heard the soft, resonating notes of a violin. The music was thrumming through her veins. Pulsing. Her heart was beating with each note. She felt more alive than ever. Her vocal cords were quivering in anticipation and she parted her lips. Then all of a sudden, she was plunged into darkness. The piano stopped abruptly, the violin screeched and a sudden silence enveloped her.

"Hey!" A loud, annoyed exclamation shattered the stillness. "Turn the freaking lights on!"

"Okay, okay! Give me a sec!"

Lacus lowered her arms and stood waiting. She felt a little silly standing in the dark, but a helpless smile tugged at her lips when she heard the muttered curses that broke the silence. It took several seconds for the lights to come back on and when they did, the stage was awash with blinding light. Instinctively, she shielded her eyes against the glare with a hand.

"Jesus, turn it down!" came the same infuriated voice.

"Okay, okay!"

The intensity of the piercing harsh light fell by a notch.

Lacus peeled her hand away from her face. It took some time for her eyes to adjust but eventually she could make out the empty stalls, the vacant seats and the very furious Cagalli Yamato who was pacing the area downstage, brandishing her rolled-up script at the control booth threateningly. "What the _hell_ is your problem?"

"I'm sorry!" The technician poked his head out through the window and shrugged helplessly. "The control system went 'bonkers' on me but don't worry! Don't worry! I can get it fixed!"

Cagalli narrowed her amber eyes at him, "You'd better, or I'll fix you!" She let out her frustration in a loud exasperated sigh and a series of annoyed kicks to one of the audience seats.

Lacus noticed that the pianist and violinist had trooped out from behind the curtains and were peering at Cagalli warily. She caught the grimace that the pianist gave her and returned it with a feeble smile.

Other actors and actresses had gathered onstage, amused expressions apparent on their faces as they watched their director unleash her fury on the vacant seat.

"Man," Her co-actor, a good-looking young man with tousled auburn hair, was standing behind her, arms crossed, shaking his head ruefully. "I'm just glad I'm not that chair," he whispered. Lacus laughed at his comment but stopped hastily when Cagalli whirled back to the stage and pointed her script at them. "Don't think I didn't hear that, Jeremy!" She snapped.

The stage actor put his hands up in mock surrender. "It's just a joke, Director!" He winced, laughing, "Take it easy!"

Cagalli pinned him with her glare, then dropped her arms in a sign of defeat. "Okay fine," she sniffed, "We'll break for tonight. Rehearsals as usual tomorrow. Nine-thirty a.m. I expect everyone to be punctual! No exceptions!"

There was a chorus of agreements as actors and musicians began to disperse.

"Yes, ma'am!" Jeremy gave a mock salute, which Cagalli dismissed with a wave of her script. "I'm watching you," She pointed two fingers at her own amber eyes and turned them around to point at Jeremy. "Gotcha!" The actor laughed as he trooped offstage and into the left wing. He snagged his bag from a chair and turned with a wave. "See you guys tomorrow!" he called out, disappearing from view, his boots echoing loudly on the wooden floorboards.

"Rehearsals over?"

Lacus turned around just in time to see Athrun step out from the shadows in the back of the theatre. He strolled down the aisle towards the stage.

"Why, hello," Lacus greeted, smiling, "I wasn't expecting you."

Athrun shrugged as he neared the stage. "I called home and Siegel told me you were having rehearsals with Cagalli. So I decided to pop by and fetch you home." He smiled gently, "So, how's the production coming along?"

"Terrible!" Cagalli scowled, which only made Athrun laugh. He leaned over the edge of the stage and exchanged an amused glance with Lacus as Cagalli began to voice her grievances, "The flyers came in this morning and they were of the wrong colour! Pink! I can't believe it. It doesn't even match our publicity poster! Besides, this musical is an adaptation of _Beauty and the Beast_; it's a classic, a bittersweet romance. _How_ does the colour _pink_ convey the idea of darkness, mystery and tragedy?"

She tossed a rolled-up poster at Athrun. He caught it with a hand and unfurled it, using the stage as a table, then winced as he saw the bright rosy background.

"-and one of the actresses went skiing and broke her leg! She went _skiing_! Just a month before our first performance and she went _skiing_!" Cagalli gestured wildly. "Now she's got a cast! How can the cook be wearing a cast?"

Athrun glanced at Lacus and his pink-haired companion merely shrugged and smiled helplessly.

"Then the light system decides to shut down and the technician needs time to fix it!" Cagalli continued, unaware of the glances, "The only thing that hasn't gone wrong today is my lead actress!" She finished with a gesture at Lacus and an exasperated sigh.

"Let me give you a lift home too." Athrun laughed, changing the subject quickly, "You look like you need it."

"Well, I won't say no to that," the blonde winked, "give me a second. I'll go grab my stuff." Athrun gave her a boost up onto the stage and they watched her scramble to her feet and hurry towards the right wing. Sitting at the edge of the stage and taking the hand Athrun offered her, Lacus slipped off and headed towards the audience seats. Her coat was draped over one of the chairs.

"Lacus, I need you to come down to the headquarters tomorrow." Athrun said, coming up behind her.

She pulled on her coat and turned around, watching him closely. He looked tired and worn-out, and a little bowed, as though the weight of the whole world was on his shoulders. There was a distracted look in his eyes.

"What's wrong?"

"I'm hoping you could help me identify some people."

"Is this related to the infiltration?"

"Yes, and the recent murder."

"Oh." Lacus glanced into the intense emerald eyes. She had read about the recent murder in the newspapers. It had made it to the headlines, simply because two of the victims were police officers. She knew it was a hard blow to Athrun. And so soon after the death of Officer Zachary Jones too.

"Are you alright?" She asked quietly

Athrun didn't bother to lie. "No," he replied simply.

Lacus parted her lips but he interrupted her smoothly with a raised hand. "I'm not alright," he repeated, shrugging, "but I'm not going off the deep end, so don't worry about me."

She didn't know what else she could offer as comfort so she just nodded. She picked up gloves and tugged them on before slinging her bag over her shoulder. "Rehearsals start at nine-thirty tomorrow," she said gently, "but Cagalli'll understand. I'll just let her know that I have to stop by the police headquarters first. Would nine be okay?"

Athrun nodded. "I'll come over and give you a lift," he offered, an appreciative smile lightening the tension on his face just a little, but Lacus could see that the smile didn't reach his deep green eyes.

* * *

7:35 p.m.

The night was setting in, and with it came a still, frigid frostiness.

He blew on the palms of his hands and rubbed them to keep warm. Leaning against the lamp post, he tucked both hands into the pockets of his jacket and gazed across the street at the National Theatre.

The National Theatre was situated in the middle of the city along one of the busiest and classiest avenues. The roads were filled with vehicles and the sidewalks with people. High-end retail shops, cafes, diners, bistros and restaurants lined the streets, and the National Theatre was an impressive structure amidst the bustle. Designed like a small baroque palace complete with colonnades, the theatre stood out among the modern, stylistic buildings.

Decorating the front of the building, was an enormous, three-storey length publicity poster. The title of the upcoming musical was written in bold, curvy letters – _Beauty & the Beast_ – over a dark, inky background covered in falling rose petals. But what drew the most attention was the female lead. Dressed in an elegant black dress, her luscious pink hair flowing over her bare shoulders, she was sitting in a burgundy plush chair, head half-turned towards camera, soft grey eyes gazing past, as if looking for something. As if someone had called out to her.

Just like the Polaroid photograph that he had in his back pocket.

Then he saw her emerge from the theatre entrance, just as she had done every night for the past week without failure. _People were creatures of habit_. He had observed and followed enough people to know that.

"She's out," the voice came through his earpiece, faint and nearly inaudible in the hubbub all around him.

He trailed her with his sharp amethyst eyes, watching as she paused on the sidewalk to pull her fur-lined coat tighter around her. She stamped her feet and rubbed her gloved hands together, turning back to the theatre. He knew she was waiting for her female companion. He waited until he saw the blonde woman descend the front steps and stand beside her.

_Cagalli Yamato. _He knew who she was. _She was the director. _He had done his homework and he knew the two women had been friends since they were young. They had gone to the same school and entered the same university. While Lacus took lessons in singing and acting, Cagalli had taken a course in directing, and they had reunited in a host of musicals and productions.

He glanced at his watch. 7:45 p.m.

Exactly on time. As usual.

Then he saw another person emerge from the theatre entrance. A man with navy blue hair. _Athrun Zala. Chief of the Special Unit._

Kira retreated, stepping back into the shadows, away from the light cast by the street lamp. This was an unusual break in the trend. Over the week, his team had been watching Lacus. He knew everything she did – what time she arrived for rehearsals, when the actors broke for lunch, what time they dispersed at night – and for the past five days, Lacus had always taken a cab with Cagalli. He even knew that it was Lacus who alighted first. Every time.

But tonight, things were different.

"Stay hidden," he whispered and heard the chorus of agreements from his teammates through his earpiece.

He watched as Athrun Zala trooped down the steps and guided the two women to a black convertible parked alongside the road. The same convertible he had seen in the Polaroid photo that Rau had passed him. He waited until the detective and the ladies had entered the vehicle and the car pulled out of its lot into the traffic, before he stepped back and melted into the shadows again.

_Author's note: Finally, an insight into what Lacus and Cagalli does for a living. I thought for quite a long time about Cagalli's occupation. It's tough to find her a suitable job, considering how she was such a politician in GS! But I decided that it was better to give her a job that would explain how she's such good friends with Lacus, and Athrun. So yup, hope everyone has enjoyed this chapter! Don't forget to review, review, review!_


	28. 27

**Chapter 27:**

"What do you think? Recognise them?"

She shook her head.

"Look again, Lacus," he persisted. Athrun rewound the video again, stabbing at the 'rewind' button on the remote a little more viciously than he intended. The video image froze and he began to play it from the beginning again.

Lacus stared at the image on the screen. She squinted at the woman and man who were running towards the camera for the fourth time, but the quality was bad and the lighting terrible. She couldn't get a clear view of the woman's face even when she came up close to the camera. When she heard the unpleasant 'bang' and the subsequent eerie silence again, she couldn't help the jerk of her shoulders.

"Do you recognise their faces, or their body language?" Athrun asked again, "The woman's voice, maybe?" He was gentle, but Lacus could still detect the undercurrent of impatience and frustration in his tone. Much as she wanted to help him, none of the photographs or videos she had seen all morning had struck a chord in her. She grimaced, shaking her head.

Athrun's fist descended on the desk. "Shit," he muttered. He sank back into his chair, running both hands through already disheveled navy blue hair.

Lacus bit her lower lip. "I'm sorry-," she began, but Athrun cut her off with a wave.

"Don't be," he gave a strained smile. "It's fine. I should be the one apologizing."

"I wish I could be of more help," Lacus murmured. She glanced down at the photographs and reports strewn across the desk and picked up a stack of papers, riffling through them. "I don't recognize any of these employees from DEX enterprises. You're sure they were there?"

Athrun nodded.

Lacus frowned. "Irene Thatcher, Sophie Giovanni, Darrell Wilson, Francis Moore, Henry Alexander," she read off the papers. "I honestly don't remember seeing any of these faces at the party."

"You're sure that he told you he was from DEX Enterprises?"

Lacus hesitated. "I remember him saying that, but-" she glanced back at the papers in her hands and shrugged, "-I'm not sure now, since his photograph isn't in here." She hesitated again, then said, "maybe I'm mistaken. Or maybe he lied to me. He could be from a different organization."

Athrun shook his head. "I don't think you're mistaken. Something's not right here. You've seen the photographs of all the guests at the party. If you can't identify him in any of these photographs, then it means that either he didn't get in through the front entrance, or that he borrowed one of those names in the list to get in, then gave you another alias to throw us off his trail. Or that the system has been tampered with."

"Maybe." Lacus replied, but she didn't really know what she was saying. There were a hundred and one possibilities and none of them quite made sense. They lapsed into silence again, with Athrun staring distractedly at the mess on his desk and Lacus watching him apprehensively.

* * *

He saw her emerge from the entrance of the police headquarters with the detective by her side.

They stepped out onto the pavement together and stood by the edge of the road. A sleek black car drew up, stopping right in front of them. Athrun Zala opened the door of the passenger seat and gestured her into it, before closing the door.

He saw her wind down the window and lean out of it, speaking to Athrun Zala in a hushed tone, the expression on her face grim. The detective nodded once, gave her a polite kiss on the cheek, then patted the hood of the car. The vehicle steered away from the curb.

He stayed to watch Athrun Zala a little longer, looking on as the blue-haired detective stood at the edge of the road and slammed his fist into a neighbouring lamp post before he stalked back into the building again. He turned and nodded at Stellar who shoved the gear into drive and steered the van into traffic, trailing after the black car that Lacus Clyne was sitting in.

* * *

Two hands grabbed her shoulders from behind and she screamed. She turned around and struck out blindly at her attacker. Her fist collided with a hard chest and she heard the breath knock out of her assailant and then to her surprise, she realised that it was her co-actor who doubled over in pain.

"Oh god," Lacus said hurriedly, "oh god, Jeremy, are you alright?"

"Yeah," the stage actor gasped, "except that I can't breathe…"

"My god, I'm so sorry."

"Don't be." She turned around and saw Cagalli enter the dressing area, a smug grin on her face. "Don't be sorry," the blonde repeated, "he deserved it. I heard him telling Chloe that he was going to scare the living daylights out of you. Look where that got him."

"It was just a joke," Jeremy protested, straightening up and wincing.

"Some joke that was," Lacus pointed out, punching him in the shoulder. Her co-actor just laughed. "You were unhappy all day," he said earnestly, "I just wanted to cheer you up."

"Right," Lacus grunted, "by scaring the daylights out of me?" She had been removing the lint of her costume before the prank and now she turned back to it. "I thought you said you had a date tonight," She grinned teasingly, "You'd better hurry!"

"Alright, alright," Jeremy said, catching up his backpack from one of the seats and slinging it over his shoulder, "I'll be off now. See you tomorrow!"

Lacus returned his wave and watched him leave the dressing room, shutting the door behind him.

"Joker," Cagalli scoffed, shaking her head, which earned her a laugh from Lacus. "We should get going too." Cagalli opened the door of the dressing room and stood in the entrance, "Give me a sec. I'll just grab my stuff and we can go."

"Sure," Lacus nodded. She watched Cagalli disappear through the door and went back to picking at the lint on her gown. Smoothing her hands over the silky material, she tried to tease a stubborn piece of lint caught in the hem of her dress. It was then that she heard the footsteps on the wooden floor boards. Very light steps that were barely audible if not for the deafening silence in the theatre.

_Jeremy, _she thought, shaking her head. _The man just didn't know when to give up his jokes._

She didn't hear the door as it swung open on its hinges silently, but she felt the change in the air, the slight draft that entered the dressing room. She smiled and shook her head. "Not again, Jeremy," she said aloud.

She felt him coming towards her, but there was no reply. "I'm not going to get freaked out again, Jeremy," she laughed, not bothering to turn around. Still, there was no reply.

Until a warm hand seized her and wrapped a handkerchief around her mouth and nose.

Her first instinct was to struggle and she kicked out blindly at her assailant but he had her in a vice-like grip. A strong arm wrapped around her waist, trapping her against a hard unyielding body. Panic-stricken, gut clenching, she twisted and bucked against him. Her fingers grappled and clawed at the hand holding the handkerchief to her face. Digging her nails into the flesh, she tried to pry it off her, just so she could breathe.

She was towed off the chair and dragged towards the door. All the while, she didn't even catch a glimpse of her assailant. They were pressed up against the wall, when she saw the door open and recognized the familiar flash of blonde hair. _Cagalli!_ She tried to scream, struggling with renewed vigor. _Help! Cagalli, help! _The hand around her mouth and nose tightened, pressing the wadded up handkerchief into her face. The sweet smell escalated. She reached desperately towards the blonde, trying to grab her, and brushed against the fabric of her sleeve. She saw Cagalli turn. Curious amber eyes froze and widened with shock.

Then Lacus saw the looming shadow behind Cagalli, a dark moving shape that morphed into the silhouette of a man. _No, not another! Run, Cagalli, run!_ She felt herself dragged backwards into the shadows, and felt the darkness closing in around her, swallowing her within its depths. The last thing she saw was a raised hand, descending quickly and sharply.

* * *

He glanced up the moment he felt her body go limp and was just in time to see Sting hit the other woman with the butt of his gun. A hard blow. It landed on its mark and Cagalli Yamato collapsed to the ground.

Sting stepped over her body and hastened towards him. "Back door," Kira ordered and Sting nodded, holstering his weapon before slinging the unconscious actress over his shoulder. He headed for the door and Kira followed, glancing around the dressing room. The dressing area was large and spacious with only basic furniture which lined the perimeter of the room. Despite the struggle Lacus Clyne had put up, they hadn't upset any of the furnishings and in Kira's experience, the less furniture upset, the less evidence they left behind. Which was a good thing.

He pocketed the rag doused in chlorofoam and retreated towards the door, watching the ground closely for any clues they might accidentally leave behind. Finding none, he turned and was just about to exit when he heard the feeble groan.

Cagalli Yamato was still conscious. Blood matted her blonde hair and streamed down the right side of her face. "Let… her… go…" she whispered, stretching a hand towards him, fingers twitching and grasping blindly, as though searching for something. "Let… go…"

And then Kira felt it – an excruciating pain that exploded between his eyes. It came suddenly and quickly, and seemed to envelop his entire head. As though his brain was expanding and pounding against the inside of his skull. His legs crumpled beneath him and he fell to his hands and knees, panting, sweat dripping down his face. Another wave of dizzying pain rippled through him and the world tilted sideways. He felt his right arm buckle under his weight and couldn't stop himself as he crashed to the floor on his side. Pain stabbed through him. Flashing white spots appeared in his vision and the overhead lights seemed to increase in intensity, creeping in from the peripheral of his vision. It chased away the shadows and kept increasing until it began reaching for him, engulfing him in its harsh whiteness. The last thing he saw before he fell unconscious was Cagalli's outstretched hand, reaching towards him.

_Author's note: So there's the next chapter! Hope this one is a bit more exciting! I'm working on the next one and eager to finish that! Don't forget to review, review, review!_


	29. 28

**Chapter 28:**

_She was there. _

_That little girl, with blonde hair and amber eyes. She reached out a small hand towards him and touched his cheek. She knitted her eyebrows in a frown and that was when he realised that there were tears on his face. She brushed at the wet trail with her delicate little fingers and flashed him a sweet reassuring smile, exposing small pearly teeth. Her puffy cheeks, tinted with a rosy hue, puffed up as she smiled._

_He covered her hand with his and drew it away from his face. With his other, he ran gentle fingers through her shoulder-length locks. The smooth blonde hair slipped through his fingers like silk. When he removed his hand, he was surprised to feel wetness on his palm and he turned his hand over. _

_Blood. _

_Horrified, his eyes rushed up to scan the little girl's face. She was staring at his palm, her golden eyes wide with terror. She reached a tentative hand to her brow and her small fingers came away covered in blood. There was a gash on her forehead and blood was streaming from it, flowing down her face in rivulets. _

_He delved into his pockets, searching desperately for a handkerchief or something. Anything to stem the bleeding. But even as he turned his pockets inside-out, he found nothing, and all he could do was put his hands on her little head and watch as the blood streamed through his fingers, like the tears flowing down his cheeks._

* * *

She opened her eyes slowly, then shut them again hurriedly, blocking out the piercing light.

"Dearka, turn the lights down. Meyrin, get the doctor."

She heard his voice and tried to open her eyes again but it seemed as if they were glued shut this time. She was too tired and the simple effort of opening her eyes was sapping the energy away from her.

"Cagalli? Are you awake? Can you open your eyes?"

His voice again. Gentle. Soothing. Encouraging.

She cracked open an eye and winced. Even though the lights had been dimmed, the rays were still overwhelming and her head was throbbing unpleasantly. Slowly, she opened her other eye and met concerned green ones.

"Hey," she rasped. She realised her lips were parched and the single word that escaped them scraped painfully against her dry and sore throat.

"Hey yourself." The worried emerald eyes softened a little. "How're you feeling?" A soft gentle smile, coupled with his tender voice.

"Like crap?" she whispered, a slight smile touching her lips.

Relief flooded the emerald eyes. "Welcome back, Cagalli."

* * *

"_I think he's waking up…"_

"_He's still running a fever. What should we do?"_

"_Have you given him the pills yet?"_

"_I don't know. I'm not sure if we can. Will it have adverse effects on his body?"_

"_I don't think so."_

"_We're so full of these shitty chemicals. How'd you know there'll be no effect?"_

"_Just calm down, guys."_

"_I'm calm! She's the one who needs calming."_

Voices. All he could hear were voices. Rising. Ebbing. Like the tide. He opened his eyes but all he could see were blurry shapes, moving, changing and waning. He closed his eyes again and let the darkness swallow him in its depths.

* * *

Cagalli winced at the bright light and fought the urge to shut her eyes against it.

"Your pupil reflexes are normal." The light was switched off and the doctor pocketed his torch, straightening up and smiling down at her. "How are you feeling, Miss Yamato? Any headache? Dizziness? Nausea?"

She shook her head, then grimaced as a throbbing pain assaulted her. "Just a headache," she corrected. She glanced at Athrun, who was leaning against the wall, biting the tip of his thumb. There was a disturbed expression on his face and he was peering at her anxiously. As though he wanted to ask her a question but didn't know how to phrase it. She pushed aside the thought as the doctor nodded and said, "That's natural, considering the blow you had. Do you remember how you got injured?"

At that, Cagalli noticed that Athrun had bolted upright from his position and was staring at her.

She frowned. She hadn't thought about that yet. _Indeed, how in the world did she end up in the hospital? _She closed her eyes and tried to concentrate. She recalled the rehearsal and the auditions for a supporting actress to replace one of the injured cast. She remembered overhearing Jeremy and Chloe's conversation as he recounted the prank that he was going to play on Lacus and-

"Lacus!" She blurted out loud.

"Yes, Cagalli." That same soothing, reassuring voice.

She opened her eyes. "Oh my god, Athrun," she stammered, grasping his arm, "they took her! I couldn't stop them. I watched as they took her away!"

* * *

"_Kira! Kira, wake up!"_

_He opened his eyes slowly and saw her. She was peering down at him, shoulder-length blonde hair framing her face and curious amber eyes watching him._

"_Kira, wake up!" she laughed. She reached out a hand towards him and he took it in his. It was warm and small. _

"_Hurry up, hurry up!" she cried, chortling excitedly. She pulled him to his feet and started to run, tugging at him. He tried to slow her down so that he could take a look at his surroundings but she was hauling him along and he had to run to keep pace. _

"_Where're you taking me?" he asked, panting. She turned and laughed, amber eyes twinkling with amusement, blonde hair streaming backwards. "You'll see!" _

_They ran on and on. Twice he stumbled, but she just pulled him up again and went on. And then of a sudden, he tripped and found himself falling. Endlessly. He heard her scream and her small hand slipped from his. He was falling through an empty void, the wind gushing past him. Fear blossomed in his stomach. Was he going to die? Was there an end to this? He squeezed his eyes shut and let himself fall freely._

_A sudden hard impact shocked him into opening his eyes. Winded, the breath in him escaped and water gushed into his mouth. He took in a lungful of it and ended up gasping and spluttering. Panicked, he realised that he had fallen into water and was rapidly sinking. He tried to swim upwards, kicking out with his legs and pulling back with his arms. But it was as if he was being sucked downwards and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't escape._

* * *

"I need you to calm down, Cagalli. Calm down."

She tried, concentrating only on the gentle hand rubbing her back and the soft shushing noises that Athrun was making.

"They took her-" She began but he interrupted her with a finger to the lips. "I know," he said gently, "I know they took her and you're the only one who saw them. I need you to help me, but to do that, you need to calm down, okay?"

She nodded and took in a deep breath. "I-I can do that," she nodded again. Her voice was shaky and she took in another deep breath, trying to still her trembling hands and calm her nerves.

"Okay?" Athrun looked at her, his emerald eyes concerned but reassuring.

"Yes."

"Okay, we're going to go slow, Cagalli, because you've just had five stitches to the head. Okay?"

She nodded again.

"Okay. Tell me what happened, Cagalli? When did they enter the theatre?"

She thought about it for a moment. "I'm not sure. Sometime past 7.30p.m."

"Were you the only ones there?"

"Yes," she nodded earnestly, and felt the start of another headache but she pushed it aside. "Yes. The rest of them went home already. The last was Jeremy."

"Okay. What happened then?"

"Lacus and I were leaving. I went out to take my things. She was-" Cagalli paused and tried to recollect her thoughts, "-she was removing the lint from her costume when I left the dressing room. When I came back, I saw her struggling with a man. He was, I don't know, gagging her? No, I think he was trying to knock her out. He was holding a handkerchief. I tried to stop him but someone hit me from behind. And then… I think I lost consciousness…" She frowned.

"Did you see their faces?"

"I-" she hesitated, her head cocked to the side. Images were flashing through her mind but she couldn't quite piece them together. "I think I saw the man who grabbed Lacus, but there's not much to tell. He was all in black garb – black shirt, black pants, black skullcap. There was a black handkerchief over his face too. The only thing I saw were his eyes… and, I don't know, Athrun. I feel like I've seen those eyes before. They're purple, dark purple."

"Wait," she added suddenly, holding up a hand, "I don't think I lost consciousness immediately. I remember seeing one of them carrying Lacus out the door, and the other man, the one whom I saw struggling with Lacus, the one with purple eyes, he collapsed."

Athrun frowned. "What?"

"Yeah, yeah," Cagalli said quickly, "I don't really know what happened but I saw him collapse. He looked like he was in pain and then he just collapsed. And… then I don't remember anything else. How was I found? Who sent me here?"

"Lacus' chauffeur," Athrun explained, "he waited for fifteen minutes and when he didn't see either of you, he went into the theatre and found you knocked out on the floor. He called an ambulance and notified me. But he didn't find Lacus, or any of the two men you mentioned."

"So Lacus is still missing?"

Athrun paused before replying. He didn't want to agitate her in her condition but he wouldn't be able to hide it from her either, so he simply said, "I'm searching for her."

"But why?" Cagalli demanded, "Why would they take her?"

"I don't know," Athrun replied, but it was a lie. He had a pretty good idea, but he was hoping – praying - that it wouldn't be true.

* * *

_She was standing there, several paces away from him._

_He ran towards her and crashed painfully into a glass wall. Sinking to his knees so that he was level to her, he put both hands on the glass. It was cold and hard. He banged a fist on it but the glass didn't yield._

_She raised her small hands and laid them on the glass too, her palms in line with his. If only the glass would melt between them like ice._

_He saw that she was crying, tears slipping down her cheeks. "Don't cry," he whispered, "Ssh, it's alright." He didn't know if she could hear him but she appeared to understand his words. The shaking of her shoulders stopped and she gazed back at him through teary, earnest eyes._

_His eyes were drawn upwards by a dark shadow that grew behind her. Rising. Changing. And he saw that it was a man with a raised gun. He tried to scream, to warn her, but he was too late and he watched as the gun descended hard on her head. _

_She didn't move, didn't collapse, but her amber eyes widened. A trickle of blood appeared in her hairline and streamed down her brow, then her cheek. Another trickle followed. And then another._

_He stood and smashed his fists into the glass but it didn't break. He tried again, retreating a few steps back, and ran forward, slamming his heel into the wall. She stood unmoving on the other side of the glass, gazing up at him as he tried desperately to shatter the barrier between them. _

_Then he saw the hand rise again and he flung himself to his knees, banging his fists against the glass repeatedly. "Run!" he yelled at her, "run!" But she didn't move and he screamed when he saw the raised arm descend. This time, it clubbed her in the side of her head and she stumbled, falling to the ground. "God, no, please," he scrambled towards her, pressing himself against the glass, trying to get to her. She laid on the other side, motionless, vacant eyes gazing up at him. The tears streamed down her cheeks. _

_Then she began to change. The little girl's body began to morph. Her legs lengthened. Her shoulder-length hair grew a little and spilled over her broadening shoulders. Her body began to take the shape of a slender young woman. And as Kira stared on in horror, he realised that he knew this woman – this woman with blonde hair and bright amber eyes. _

_Cagalli Yamato._

_Why? How? He caught sight of the moving shadow behind her still body and he glanced up. Fear paralysed him when he caught the sly glint in the man's eyes. The man's dark purple eyes. Oh god, what was happening? His eyes roamed over the familiar face – the messy brown hair, the boyish grin. It was him. He was looking at himself… He stared in horror as the smile changed. The corners of the lips turned down and the upper lip curled up to bare his teeth. It became a sneer, filled with malicious intent. His reflection, his doppelganger, his clone, whatever it was – he didn't know – raised his arm and held the gun to his head, the gun barrel pressed tight to his skull. And then he began to laugh. A soundless, silent laugh. From across the glass, he couldn't hear a thing, but he could see the crazy laughter in the dark eyes, the wild twisted mouth. And then a sudden spray of blood and he watched himself collapse. He landed right beside the woman, right beside Cagalli Yamato, their bodies parallel to each other and both their heads turned towards him. Blood streamed down the side of their skulls and pooled under their heads._

_Kira scrambled backwards, staring at the vacant eyes of the dead woman and himself. What was happening? How? Why? His vision began to blur. For a moment he thought that he was losing consciousness but then he realised that it was just tears._

Author's note: Okay, here's the next chapter. Whew! Too much Cagalli and Kira interaction in this uber long chapter. What do you think? Like it? Don't like it? Remember to review, review, review! Kira should be waking up in the next chappie! Wheeee!


	30. 29

**Chapter 29:**

"Kira? Can you hear me?"

He opened his eyes slowly. His vision was blurred and he could see shadows moving but he couldn't see enough to make them out. He closed his eyes for a moment then opened them again. This time, his vision was a tad clearer and it took a while more for it to adjust back to normal.

"Kira?" He turned his head slowly towards the voice and when he saw the mop of blonde hair, he recoiled. _Was it her?_

"What's wrong? Are you alright? Kira?"

_No, it wasn't. It wasn't her voice. _

He shut his eyes and opened them again, this time trying to focus on the speaker. It worked and he was relieved to find Stellar peering at him anxiously, "Kira? Are you alright?" He nodded and realised there was a foreign pressure on his forehead. Reaching up slowly, he removed the warm towel resting against his brow.

"You were running a fever," Stellar explained worriedly when she saw the questioning look in his eyes.

He nodded again and tried to sit up. His head protested against the movement and a throbbing pain assaulted him from behind his eyes. He pressed his fingers to his brow in an effort to stem the pounding. He was aware of Stellar's arm wrapped around his back, supporting him, and he pried his fingers away so that he could look at her. "How long was I out?" he whispered.

"One whole day," She replied. Her eyes glistened with unshed tears. "You were running a fever and we didn't know if we could give you any medications. And then you started dreaming – one moment you were shouting, and the next you were crying. We couldn't wake you up. Oh Kira, you scared the hell out of us."

He didn't reply to that. He didn't think he had the strength to reply. It was taking all his effort just to concentrate on sitting up and maintaining his balance. Or perhaps it was that he didn't really know what sort of reply to give. He had lots of questions of his own - a ton of questions swimming in his pounding head. Strange images were flashing through his mind – images left behind from the disconnected, varied dreams that he had been in, whilst drifting in the world between consciousness and unconsciousness. _What did it all mean? _

Stellar tried to press the moist towel to his brow again, but he deflected her gently with a raised arm. "I'm fine," he muttered, giving her a faint smile. _A million and one questions, but he would answer them later. He had wasted enough time. _Quickly changing the subject, he asked, "Where's Auel and Sting?"

"They're watching Lacus Clyne."

_Right_, he thought to himself_. _He had nearly forgotten all about Lacus Clyne. All he had in his head were flashes of blonde hair and amber eyes. He shook his head to clear it as best as he could and glanced around him. He was in a room, boxed in on all sides by walls with no windows. Like a basement.

He recognized the place - it was their hideout. _So, they had returned safely. _Swinging his legs over the edge of the bed, he took a deep breath and stood up, swaying a little.

"Where're you going?" She asked, concerned.

He glanced back at her as he headed for the door. "Time to make that call."

* * *

Athrun watched as Nicol hooked up the various wires and devices to the telephone. "How much time will you need?" he asked.

Nicol raised two fingers without glancing up from his work. "We've got to keep him talking for two minutes," he replied, "at the very least." Athrun nodded and looked on as Meyrin started up the computer system and Shinn uncoiled the wires. Glancing over at Siegel Clyne, he could see that the man was consumed with worry. He was hunched over in the couch, staring blankly at the phone. Just waiting.

Athrun turned back to his subordinates who were busy setting up the tracking system. He felt useless sitting like that. Lacus had been gone for more than twenty-four hours and in his experience, a lot could happen in twenty-four hours. _Twenty-four hours was enough time to take a plane across the country. A robbery could be committed in less than an hour. Maybe arson, if given half the time. Sexual assault could take place in fifteen minutes. Murder could take ten, and if carried out by professionals, maybe three would do._

Athrun hit himself hard on the head with the flat of his palm. The sound made his teammates glance up at him in alarm; even Siegel Clyne snapped out of his reverie to look at him and he quickly shook his head to indicate that he was alright.

_Damn, don't go there, _he thought to himself. _Don't go there. Lacus wouldn't come to harm. _He had a pretty good idea what this case was about, or rather who they were and what they were was all about the vial and before getting their hands on it, they wouldn't dare to hurt Lacus. She was safe.

For now.

But if they managed to get their hands on the real drug…

He couldn't bear thinking about that.

* * *

His watch told him that it was only six-thirty a.m. The day had only just begun and the sun hadn't yet completely risen. The sky on his right was streaked with reddish, gold hues, but the sky on his left was still dull and grey. The cold wind stung his face and threatened to seep through his jacket.

They had broken into the theater at seven-thirty p.m. and Stellar had said that he had been out for a whole day. Judging by the time, Kira was sure that he had been out for thirty-five hours to be exact. More than a day. A lot could happen in thirty-five hours. If the police had found Cagalli Yamato already, then Athrun Zala had to be on the case. A smart detective could get a lot done in thirty-five hours, but Kira was sure that his team had cleaned up good. No clues left behind at the scene. No loose ends. All Athrun Zala would find were dead-ends.

He stepped out of the building and passed through a narrow alley, walking between two low cinder-blocks. He was in an industrial area, a remote place away from the city and the entire vicinity was quiet and secluded, all the buildings around him abandoned warehouses. He kept walking until he had reached the edge of the industrial park, bordered by a rusty fence. Passing under the scratched, rickety signboard, he stepped out onto a dilapidated street, flanked on both sides by shabby shops selling a range of knick-knacks from second-hand appliances to firearms, both legally and illegally-obtained. It was still early and none of the shops were open. Shutters and dark windows lined the street.

Hands deep in his pockets, he strolled onwards, down one street, then another. A right turn, down one avenue. Then a left turn, onto another street, until he saw the phone booth he was heading for.

By the time he stepped into the tight little cubicle, he could feel the strain on his body and mind. _Still weak. Still with a million questions. But he hadn't the time. _Reaching into his pocket, he drew out a handful of coins, dropped one of them into the slot, then dialed the number he had memorized.

* * *

The tension in the Clyne Mansion was so strong that Athrun could imagine seeing it cackling through the place, zipping from one person to another. He was so immersed in his thoughts, so trained on the silence and the attention that he jumped when the phone rang.

"Is that it?" Siegel whispered hastily, glancing at him for directions.

"I don't know," Athrun said, "Just stay calm, Siegel. Remember, if it's him, keep him talking for two minutes. Nicol will be doing the count-down." He gestured at Nicol who raised his stopwatch reassuringly and nodded.

Releasing his pent-up breath, Siegel pushed the button on the phone and the ringing stopped. Athrun raised a hand, indicating for absolute silence from all the other occupants in the room.

_Was this it? _

"Hello, Siegel Clyne speaking."

The phone was on speaker mode, as Athrun had directed, and the voice that came through could be heard by everyone in the room. It was cold and distant. The voice of a murderer, and it simply said, "Good morning, Mr. Clyne. I think you know who I am."

_Author's note: There's the next chapter. Hmm… a little short but yeah, the action will be picking up a little from here! Keep reading, and don't forget to review, review, review!_


	31. 30

_Author's note: Okay! Here's the next chapter. Oh my, I enjoyed writing this chapter so much, especially the countdown, but I think the characters went a little OCC. Hmm… well, read on and let me know what you think!_

**Chapter 30:**

There was a sharp intake of breath from Meyrin and Athrun silenced her with a hard glare.

"I don't know who you are," Siegel replied, his voice quiet and calm and he cast a glance at Athrun. His eyes betrayed the nervousness and tension in him and Athrun gave him a thumbs-up to signify that he was doing alright.

"Well," the voice said, "this call concerns your daughter Lacus Clyne."

"What do you want?"

"Let's talk about this privately, Mr. Clyne."

"I'm alone right now."

Laughter cackled through the speakers. "No, you're not, Mr. Clyne. I'm sure there are people listening as we speak. Turn off the speaker mode, Mr. Clyne. Then, let's talk."

Siegel glanced at Athrun who nodded reluctantly. He depressed a button on the phone set and indicated Siegel to pick up the receiver. The blonde-haired man did as told and cradled the phone to his ear. "It's just me now. Tell me what you want." He listened for a moment in silence. Athrun glanced over at Nicol who shook his head, frowning. _He needed more time._

Turning back to Siegel, he mouthed silent, 'More time'. Siegel nodded his understanding.

"You took my daughter just for that?" he said into the phone, "We can do another transaction. Tell me how much money you want and I can give it to you. Don't hurt her…" A pause and Siegel was listening intently to what the man on the other end of the phone was saying. "But I don't have the serum. It was stolen… I really don't have it. No, it's true…" There was a long pause and Athrun watched as Siegel's face turned grey. Whatever the man was saying, it wasn't good news.

"No! Wait, wait… hold on! Yes, okay, I do have the serum and I can give it to you, just as long as you leave her alone… yes… yes, I can… Tell me the place…"

Athrun could sense the conversation coming to an end and he glanced quickly at Nicol who shook his head again, more vigorously, alarm written all over his face. _Damn_. He snatched the phone receiver from Siegel.

"What do you want?" He demanded, his voice hardening with contempt and loathing. He was speaking to the man responsible for Lacus' kidnapping. The man who was responsible not only for injuring Yzak but also for killing three of his men, and right now, Athrun wanted nothing more than to reach across the phone line, seize the man's neck and break it.

"Hello, Detective Zala. I've been waiting to hear your voice for a long time." The voice was smooth and calm.

"What do you want?" Athrun spat. He didn't miss the fact that the man knew his name and rank and had recognized him the moment he picked up the phone. The man knew more about him than he did the man and Athrun was aware that he was on the losing end.

"I've already told Mr. Clyne what I want, and I think you know it too, Mr. Zala."

Nicol raised a finger to signal that he needed another minute. "When do you want it?" Athrun asked, keeping an eye on Nicol.

"Thirty-six hours from now, Mr. Zala. You'll hear from me again as to the location."

"Prove that Lacus is alive," Athrun bargained, "let me hear her voice, then we'll arrange something."

There was laughter on the other end of the phone line. "Now, Detective, you're trying to be sneaky," the voice said. Athrun could sense the hint of amusement behind the words and knew the man was smiling. He glanced at Nicol who indicated that he needed thirty more seconds.

"I'm not an amateur and you know it, Mr. Zala. You're not stupid and neither am I. I don't make bargains with my enemies. You'll just have to trust me when I say Lacus Clyne is alive, and you'll have her back in one piece, completely unharmed. Just as long as you get me what I want."

"Like you said," Athrun dragged out, "I'm not stupid. What makes you think I'll let you walk away scot-free?"

Nicol raised both hands and spread out ten fingers. Ten more seconds. He began counting down.

"I know you'll try to stop me, Detective-"

Athrun watched as the fingers on Nicol's hands curled one after another. _Nine. Eight._

"-but unless I let you, you won't even catch a glimpse of me-"

_Seven. Six. Keep talking. Keep talking._

"-A game of cat and mouse, Detective. But I wonder who's the cat?"

_Five. Four._ Athrun held his breath. _Come on, come on._

"Oops. According to my watch, time's almost up-"

_Three. Come on!_

"Till next time, Detective Zala."

_Two._

The line went dead.

* * *

Kira leaned back against the filthy glass wall and closed his eyes. He realized that he was perspiring, the sweat beading on his forehead and slipping down his face. _Was it the stress? The tension?_ He shook his head. _He was just tired. Still weak._

He straightened, pulling himself together, removed a handkerchief from his back pocket and swiped the phone receiver, wiping it clean of his fingerprints. Then he hung it back in its cradle and ran the handkerchief over the payphone, rubbing each button clean.

While he was talking to Athrun Zala, the sun had risen and the sky was now tinted yellow and gold. The cold hadn't been chased away though and he pulled his jacket around his body tighter. He stepped back out onto the pavement and glanced down the street both sides and saw no one. No suspicious loiterers, no glints from sunlight reflected off the lenses of hidden cameras or binoculars. _Safe. No one about. _He glanced back down the right side of the street, the way he had come. He wasn't looking forward to the journey back and he didn't think he could make it either. He was too tired.

And then, as if on cue, he saw a familiar black van swerve out onto the road, heading in his direction. It pulled to a stop before him and the passenger door was flung open invitingly. Sting Oakley grinned at him from behind the wheel. "I thought you could do with a ride," the green-haired man laughed, "You look like shit."

Kira rolled his eyes at the comment, but he couldn't stop the smile that crept to his lips. He pulled himself into the van and Sting revved up the engine, pulling away from the curb.

* * *

Athrun slammed the phone receiver onto the ground. "Shit!" He growled, "Shit! Shit! Shit!" He thrust his hands into his disheveled blue hair.

"He knew we were tracing the phone," Nicol pointed out. A comment which was utterly un-helpful in Athrun's opinion, as he delivered a vicious kick to the coffee table. "I know that!" He snarled, throwing him an irate glare. "Tell me you got something, Nicol. Anything."

His subordinate exchanged a nervous glance with Lunamaria, then turned back to him and shook his head. "We were close to getting a location, but he cut us off at the last second. Literally."

"Shit!" Athrun gave the coffee table another volley of kicks. He wanted to sink his fists into something, anything. Better yet, into the face of the man he had just spoken to.

_Damn!_ He had foreseen the call. He had pre-arranged everything, made sure Nicol's systems were up and running, made sure his men were all prepared to move out on a second's notice. He had been ready for the call, ready to take him out once and for all. But he had been outwitted again. _Again!_

All this while, he had watched their every move closely. He had tried to set up a trap in the Clyne Corporation and though he hadn't caught them, he had narrowly succeeded in keeping the vial safe. Then they had had the nerve to break in during Lacus' homecoming party but he had thwarted their plans with a fake serum, only to have one of his men killed and another injured during the process. Just as soon as he had found a chink in their armour, they had gone on ahead of him and covered up their tracks. He had lost two men because of that. And now, they had taken Lacus, his own family.

_A cat and mouse game, _the man had said, _but who's the cat? _Athrun threw his fist into the coffee table and the glass middle shattered, falling to the ground in shards. _Well, he had no intention of being the mouse. _He stooped, grabbed his car keys from the midst of the glass pieces and turned on his heel, heading for the door.

"Where're you going, Chief?" Meyrin called out.

He ignored the alarmed glances that his men were giving him and the concerned look on Siegel Clyne's face. _Time to end it all. Time to go on the offensive. _

_Author's note: Yay, next chapter up! Well, what do you think? Review X3 and let me know!_


	32. 31

**Chapter 31:**

Seven a.m. The time when the world began to rouse and awaken.

Kira watched as the streets zipped past the window. The quiet roads that he had passed through earlier that morning were slowly awakening as shopkeepers went about their businesses, opening shutters and pulling racks of products out onto the pavement.

His head was pounding again, and with each throb, a question floated into his mind. _Was the little girl in his dreams Cagalli Yamato? Why would he have dreams about her? Had they met before? Why didn't he remember her? He had felt such a strong connection to her, as if they were linked. But in that dream, he had attacked her. Why would he attack her? What did it all mean?_

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to slow the beating of his heart and hopefully, the slew of questions that were battering his mind.

"You alright?"

He opened his eyes and saw Sting glancing at him, concern reflected in his eyes. He was getting that look way too often now. First Stellar, and now Sting. Either he really looked like shit, or he must have seriously freaked them out with his collapse. "I'm fine," he smiled. "Just tired."

"Right."

Skepticism. Well, he got a lot of that from his teammates too, whenever he said he was fine.

They understood him, more than anyone else did. More than Rau Le Creuset, more than any of the trainers at the facility. He paused. _Did Cagalli Yamato understand him too? Was it possible that while he was having dreams of her, she too had dreams of him? But why? How were they related? Could she have been someone from his past, someone he had met but deemed unnecessary to commit to memory? Impossible. He never forgot anyone he met. _He scanned his memory, tried to remember as far back as he could, from the moment he had stepped out of the facility and entered his new home. No sign of Cagalli Yamato, not until he had spied her at the front entrance of the theater, standing alongside Lacus Clyne. But at that point in time, he had known her as the director of the theatre play, as Lacus Clyne's best friend.

It suddenly dawned on him then that perhaps she was one of Rau's recruits too. Perhaps he had seen her _in_ the facility. He considered the possibility for a moment, then dismissed it. _No, not in the facility, no. He hadn't met her then. It wouldn't make any sense._

His memories were basically segmented into two categories: the first, were his memories of being _in_ the facility and the second were his memories of being _out_ of the facility. _So, if he hadn't met her in either of the two phases of his life, then when had he met her? _

Beyond his memories of the facility, were still memories of the facility. Nothing beyond the facility.

_What was his first memory?_ He thought about it for a second. It had been so long ago and it came back to him slowly, sluggishly – like pouring treacle from a jug – but vividly and clearly. It was just the way his brain functioned. His memories were stored away like computer files, packed away until he needed them. It didn't matter how much time had passed, those memories were always there. He had never forgotten them.

* * *

_Cold. It was the first thing he felt when he awakened. Icy coldness that seeped into his skin and flesh and reached for his bones. He opened his eyes. _

_Hunger. _

_A gnawing hunger that made him feel as if his stomach was caving in on itself. _

_And thirst._

_As if his throat had been scraped with sandpaper. _

_He sat up slowly, pushing himself up on his elbows. It was all grey. The walls, the ceiling, the floor – all grey. No windows. A single grey steel door. Where was he? He swung his legs over the edge of the bed he was lying on. No mattress, he realised. He was lying on a hard iron bed frame. Where was he?_

_He was naked. Not a stitch on his small body. The cemented floor felt ice-cold under his bare feet. He tried to stand and fell backwards onto the iron frame, bruising his hip. Weakness – he felt it in his legs. They were like jelly. He tried again and this time, managed to stagger to his feel and totter towards the single steel door. _

_Where was he? He placed both hands on the cold metal and banged his fists on it. Feebly at first, then harder. Where was he? How did he get here? What was this place?_

_Who was he?_

"_Help!" he cried. No one replied. "Someone help me!" He banged his little fists hard on the door._

_He heard a scrape and he pressed his ear to the cold metal. Footsteps. He heard footsteps. Then a grating sound. He stepped back just as the door swung inwards._

_A woman. In a white coat. Silhouetted in the doorway. She was tall and she crouched down so that they were level. _

"_What's your name?" She asked._

_He didn't know so he shook his head. _

"_Do you know where you are?" _

_Again, he shook his head._

"_Do you want your mummy and daddy?"_

_He paused. He didn't understand her question and he stared at her with wide innocent eyes. _

"_Your mummy?" she repeated, watching him and when he didn't reply, she asked, "Your daddy?" Again, there was no reply. This time, she smiled, as if pleased at him._

_Then she stood up and turned towards the door. He reached out and caught the hem of her white coat in his small hand. "Don't leave me," he whispered, tugging at her. She didn't look at him. Instead, she glanced at the door. "He's done. I'll leave him to you." _

_Peering around her, he caught sight of a man standing in the doorway, arms folded. An imposing presence. _

_The woman stepped towards the door and he tailed after her, running to keep pace, keeping his hand on the hem of her coat. "Let go," she snapped at him. He recoiled, frightened by her tone, and she brushed him off easily. She passed the man in the doorway and closed the door behind her without a backward glance. _

_Left all alone with the stranger. _

"_You're new, right?" the man said. There was a sneer on his face. A terrifying smile. He felt fresh tears spring to his eyes as the man advanced on him. He didn't have time to respond as a large hand slapped him on the face. He fell to the ground and when he glanced around, he saw the man standing over him, towering over him. "Your first lesson, boy," the man said, "is never to cry. That's weakness, boy, and over here, we don't accept weaklings." _

* * *

Kira closed his eyes as the memory flooded in. _His first memory._ He remembered it as if it were yesterday. The man had beaten him. Repeatedly. Until he was lying in a puddle of his own blood. Until he had come to fear the man who eventually became one of his trainers at the facility.

But he had learnt to change that fear and shape it into hatred. He turned it into his driving force, the very air he breathed in that kept him alive. Since then, he hadn't shed a tear. _His first lesson_. _Forever imprinted in his mind._

_But why was _that_ his first memory? What had happened before that? _Kira thought hard about it, but it was like running into a wall. A dead-end. A barrier. There were no other 'first' memories. That was it.

_Why?_

He was so absorbed in his thoughts that he didn't realize they had arrived back at the warehouse until the van came to a shuddering halt. Jerked out of his memories, he glanced over at Sting who was eyeing him suspiciously, "Are you sure you're alright?"

Kira considered the question, and realized he had no answer to it. _Was he alright? _He didn't think so.

"What's the first thing that you can remember?" He turned and glanced at his teammate.

Sting gave him a perplexed look.

"Your first memory," Kira elaborated, "the very first thing that comes to your mind. The start of all your other memories."

The green-haired man rubbed his chin thoughtfully and his eyes searched the ceiling of the van. Kira waited, drumming his fingers on the dashboard in an impatient rhythm. Then Sting grinned and glanced back at him. "My first memory?" he laughed, eyes twinkling excitedly, "I was one of the best ass-kickers around."

When Kira frowned at him, he shrugged and laughed, "What? It's true. We were back in the facility and some stupid kid was trying to steal my food so I kicked his ass. Hard. I don't know how I did it, but the trainers told me later that I kinda smashed his skull in, so..." Another shrug of the shoulders. "Yeah, that's kinda like the first thing I remember. Why?" Curious green eyes turned to look at him. "What's with the sudden bout of nostalgia? Very unlike you. You sure you didn't hit your head when you went down?"

Kira ignored his last question. "What about before that? Like, how did you get to the facility?"

Sting quirked an eyebrow and glanced up at the ceiling searchingly again. "I don't know," he muttered, "I never seriously thought about it. Never saw the need. We all grew up in the facility. Maybe we were born there. Maybe our parents were screwed up scientists who tried to experiment on us. I don't know. What's with all these questions anyway?"

"Have you ever had any strange dreams? Have you ever dreamt of people you don't know?"

"No, I haven't. Sheesh, Kira, you're acting like a fucking psychologist. What's the matter with you?" Sting gave him a look of repulsion.

Sensing the end of the conversation, Kira merely shrugged and glanced out of the window, "Nothing."

"Hmm."

He was surprised by the hand that came into his line of vision and rested on his forehead. Turning around, he looked at Sting who had a thoughtful expression on his face as he rested the back of his hand against Kira's brow. "What are you doing?" Kira sighed.

"Let Dr. Oakley take a look at you. I think you're having a fever, Kira. I would prescribe lots of rest and maybe a time-out away from Auel and Stellar, who are no doubt bickering at this point in time."

Kira brushed him off. "Not funny, Sting."

His teammate just laughed and sat back, leaning against the door to get a better look at him. "Hey," he smiled, "don't worry about a thing. You're probably just worn out. We've always led our lives like that, man. Don't go stressing yourself thinking about these weird things. They're not for people like us. Just relax. We've got your back. We're all good." He gave Kira a gentle punch in the shoulder, then opened the door and slid out of the van.

Kira watched him leave. There was still a nugget of doubt in him. _But Sting was right. They had always led their lives like that. Dictated by Rau, dictated by the facility. They had never questioned their orders, never questioned their origins, never questioned their parentage, never questioned how they had come to be and why they were so fucked up. It was just how they led their lives. The _only_ way they knew how to lead their lives. So why was he questioning it now? _He shook his head and pressed a hand to his forehead. _What in hell was wrong with him?_

_Author's note: Here's the next chapter. So, what do you think about this chapter? Just wanted to show a little bit more about what Kira was feeling. I felt a little bad writing this. Hmmm... remember to review, review, review!_


	33. 32

**Chapter 32:**

"What do you mean I can't send the footage to the media?" Athrun snarled.

Murrue Ramius narrowed her eyes, her expression hardening. "I mean what I said, Detective Zala," She said quietly, "You're not permitted to pass the video footage or any of the information on the case to the press."

Athrun slammed a fist onto the desk. It didn't have an effect on Murrue. "If we can get the media to broadcast the footage, someone may recognize the man and woman in the video. With the name that Lacus gave us and the physical description that Cagalli provided us with, we can alert the public. Someone may come forward and offer us a clue of some sort," he protested.

"Firstly, there is not a lot of information about the guy. The name 'Kira Hibiki' may not even be a real name and all that Cagalli has given us is the colour of his eyes. That's not enough. Secondly, alerting the media would be equivalent to alerting the criminals."

"It's a risk I'm willing to take," Athrun persisted. He struggled to control his temper and his volume, which was rapidly rising. "Doing something – anything - is better than sitting around and waiting!"

"But it is _not_ a risk that the police department is willing to take!" Murrue snapped back.

That made Athrun pause. He knew where this conversation was going and he couldn't believe it. "You're sacrificing her to save the reputation of the police force," he accused, staring at the Assistant Commissioner in disbelief.

"I'm not sacrificing Lacus," Murrue reasoned, "but the public is already appalled by the fact that we had two police officers killed in action. And that is when they don't even have the details. I saw that video footage. The only word that can describe it is 'brutal'. Our men were gunned down in cold blood, Athrun. They didn't even get a chance to retaliate! If the media gets its hands on it, they're going to dramatize it, then what do you think the people will think about us?"

"That we put our lives at risk for them-"

"No," she interrupted, "that's being idealistic, Athrun. The people will lose confidence in us. They will realize that we're dealing with something bigger than us. Our reputation is at stake here."

"So you're going to sacrifice Lacus to keep your reputation intact?" Athrun bellowed.

"I didn't say that!" Murrue yelled back at him, "I'm supplying you with all the best resources and as much manpower as I can get my hands on, Detective."

"It's not good enough. We need more eyes, Murrue! That is when the public comes in handy!"

Murrue shook her head. "I think I've made myself clear enough, Detective Zala." She glanced down at the report on her desk and said in a tone of finality, without looking at him, "You're dismissed."

"Murrue-"

"I've made my stand, Detective."

"And I've made mine," Athrun rebutted, "My job is to rescue her."

"And mine is to protect the interests of both the citizens and our police officers," Murrue snapped, raising her head to look at him. Athrun returned her gaze with a hard glare, both of them engaged in a silent battle. Murrue broke the eye contact first and returned to her report. "I'm taking you off the team, Athrun," she said flatly.

"What?" Athrun bolted upright. The chair fell backwards and clattered noisily to the ground. Murrue paused in her reading and cast a glance at the fallen furniture, then lifted her gaze to look at Athrun squarely. She stood up so that they were level and met his livid emerald eyes with impersonal brown ones. "You're letting your emotions get to you, Detective. I'm assigning this case to someone else and I suggest you stay out of it."

"And what if I don't concur to stay out of the case?" Athrun asked, his voice low and dangerous.

Murrue merely shook her head. "Don't force me to put you on temporary leave, Athrun. I don't want to have to ask you to surrender your badge and gun." She paused, then added, "You've got an outstanding record and you'll probably be my successor. Everyone knows it. But what you're doing now-" She made a vague gesture with her hand, "-it's not helping your promotion."

_Fuck the promotion_. _Fuck the record. _Athrun bit his lip. _He didn't give a damn about becoming the next Assistant Commissioner. But he needed the badge, and the gun, if he wanted to rescue Lacus. The credibility and the firepower were sure to come in handy for what he was planning to do. And he was planning to hunt down the bastards and kill them. Whether Murrue Ramius liked it or not. Whether the upper management approved it or not._

He turned on his heel and stalked towards the exit.

"Do I have your promise to stay out of this, Athrun?" Murrue called out.

He wrenched open the door. "Yes," he snarled without turning back to look at her, "You have my fucking promise, Ma'am." He slammed the door behind him, ignoring the alarmed looks that the police officers outside were giving him. He stomped down the corridor towards the lift and stabbed the lift button viciously. Then he slammed his fist into the wall. _Don't count on it, Murrue_, _don't fucking count on it._

* * *

Her wrists were tightly bound behind her and as she pulled and twisted at her bonds, she knew there was no way to free her hands. She tugged against the rope around her ankles but it was just another futile attempt.

Blindfolded, she had no idea where she was, or how long she had been awake. It could be hours, or even weeks, but judging from the relentless pounding in her skull, it was probably the former. She had woken up in the strange darkness, lightheaded and dazed. The bruising headache, coupled with gnawing nausea, had nearly caused her to throw up but she had held herself together as best as she could. She had called out for help but there was no reply. Only her feeble voice which echoed back at her. She cried and shouted till her voice was hoarse but no one came. Her kidnappers, whoever they were, didn't appear and they left her surrounded in this weighty silence, as if she was the only person left on earth.

She was hungry and thirsty and she tried to distract herself from her discomfort by analyzing her situation. _How the hell had she gotten herself into this predicament?_ The darkness resulting from the blindfold helped – it allowed her to focus her thoughts inwards as she tried to recall what had happened back in the theatre. _Jeremy_, she thought. _Maybe this was all a sick joke. Jeremy's idea of a prank. _She repeated that to herself a few times, trying to convince herself that this was all a trick, but she shook her head helplessly after a while. _Who was she kidding? _

_Was this really a kidnap? Whoever it was, hadn't come for Cagalli. _She remembered seeing the hand descending down on the blonde. _Oh god, was Cagalli alright? How badly hurt was she? Had anyone found her yet? She hadn't been… killed, had she? _She shook her head hard and the pounding in her head started up again. She welcomed it. Anything to distract her from her thoughts of Cagalli. _Cagalli would be fine. She had to be. Besides, the target wasn't her. They had probably just knocked her out temporarily. _

She turned her thoughts back to herself. _Why would she be the victim of a kidnap? For money_, she decided, s_he was probably being held for a ransom. _She thumped her bound feet hard on the ground in frustration. She wondered how much money they were demanding. What they were doing to threaten her father.

_Father… _She felt a lump grow in her throat and she tried to fight back the tears. _This was no time to cry. _She bit her bottom lip and shook her head. _No amount of tears was going to save her. She had to find a way to escape. _

_Somehow._

She considered her circumstances. The odds were against her: mentally, she was still dizzy from whatever drug she had inhaled; physically, she was weak from hunger and thirst; emotionally, she was exhausted and in a wreck.

She couldn't do anything about her physical needs, not unless they gave her food and water soon, and so far, she didn't see a possibility of that happening. The dizziness would hopefully fade soon. What she had control over, were her emotions and she slammed the lid down on them. _There was no time to be afraid, no time to feel upset, no time to panic. _She wouldn't be able to do a thing until one of her kidnappers made an appearance. Until then, she was going to keep herself composed and conserve her energy. _The calm before the storm_.

Lacus leaned back against the wall behind her and tried to get as comfortable as possible, stretching out her bound legs and tucking her arms to her side. She accepted the darkness of the blindfold and settled back, waiting for the right moment to strike.

_Author's note: That's the next chapter. Sheesh, as I was writing it, I realized everyone in the story was going crazy. First it was Kira in the previous chapter, and now Athrun's losing his mind too. Anyway, review and tell me how you find the story so far! _


	34. 33

**Chapter 33:**

The problem with temporary hideouts was that they were never fully functional. For starters, the lights were faulty and flickered with an infuriating persistence, casting shadows all around. But that was a minor issue compared to the fact that the heater in the basement was practically useless and that was what annoyed Kira the most.

As the elevator ascended, he jammed his hands deep into the pockets of his jacket to keep warm. The weather was changing for the worst. He could tell. And with a malfunctioning heater, the frigid, numbing coldness was beginning to seep into the warehouse. _Just icing on the cake_, Kira thought bitterly, _it was what he needed to make things worse than they already were._ He had never liked the cold. It reminded him too much of the time he had spent in the facility.

"Are you still thinking about all that psychoanalytical stuff?"

He glanced over at Sting who was leaning against the wall on the other side of the cargo lift with a raised eyebrow.

"No," he lied. "Why?"

Sting shrugged, "Because you're scowling."

Kira looked away and concentrated on the mounting red digits at the top of the lift. "I'm just cold," he grunted, "bloody heater is just a piece of trash." _Which was the truth_.

The lift grated to a halt. The red digit at the top of the cargo lift informed them that they had reached the fourth level. The doors rattled open to expose a large, vast empty area. Kira and Sting stepped out and the lift doors rattled close behind them.

The fourth level of the warehouse was a rectangular empty space, lined on both sides with shuttered, iron grill windows. The only source of light was from the harsh fluorescent tubes hanging precariously from the ceiling, and flickering in that galling manner. To the far end, Kira spotted a cluster of glowing computer screens and two familiar silhouettes parked in its center.

One of them rose as they approached.

"Kira, are you alright?" Stellar muttered urgently, "You were so long, we got worried."

"I'm fine."

"Are you sure? Do you want to sit down? Maybe you should-"

Kira stopped her tirade with a firm hand on her shoulder as she struggled to maneuver a tattered old chair around the tangle of wires. He shook his head, staring at her intently. A look which deflated her panic and anxiety immediately. "Okay," she attempted a smile, "but do eat something." She handed him a pack of sandwiches and a bottle of water which Kira relented and accepted gratefully. Hurriedly changing the subject, he nodded at the computer screens, "How's Lacus Clyne?"

Auel swiveled around in his chair. "Right now?" He shrugged, "nothing new. She woke up about twenty-four hours ago and she was making a hell of a racket, but then she just stopped. Maybe she knocked herself out." He snickered, jabbing a thumb at the computer screen.

Kira leaned over Auel's shoulder so that he could get a better look. The image on the screen was grainy but he could just make out the slumped body in the corner of the room and the familiar shock of pink hair that confirmed the woman's identity.

"Did she eat?"

"What?" Auel frowned, turning to give him an incredulous look.

"Eat," Kira repeated, then he paused and his amethyst eyes narrowed and darkened. "Don't tell me you haven't given her any food or water."

The pale blue-haired man just shrugged his shoulders. "Why the hell would we give her food and water?"

"Why?" Kira snapped, "Because she's human."

"So? This is a kidnapping. Not a spa retreat session."

Kira glared hard at him.

"What?" Auel protested. "It's none of our business."

Kira just shook his head and turned to Stellar. "Give me another pack of sandwiches," he said, beckoning with a hand. Stellar merely fixed him with a look of confusion and concern. She clutched the plastic bag close to her chest. "We've only got enough food to last us for two days," she winced, "I bought just enough for the four of us."

Kira stared in disbelief at his teammate. "So you guys just figured that we were going to sit around and wait for Clyne to turn up with the vial?" He said, his voice rising despite himself, "and in the meantime, we're going to let his daughter die of starvation?" He shook his head, suddenly rendered speechless. Grabbing his own pack of sandwiches and bottle of water, he turned on his heel.

"I don't understand why you're so worked up," Auel insisted, "you were out cold for more than a day. We were more concerned about you than some stupid bitch. Why should we care if she eats or sleeps or shits?"

"Just shut up, alright?" Kira barked over his shoulder, "I appreciate the concern, but just shut up and stick to watching her, okay?" He stomped off in the direction of the lift, ignoring the alarmed glances that his team was looking at him with.

* * *

Athrun Zala stormed into his office and slammed the door behind him. Snarling to himself, he kicked out viciously at the door which rattled dangerously in its frame. Ignoring it, he tore off his jacket and balled it in his hands, then hurled it furiously over his desk. It caught the edge of his chair and slithered to the ground. "Fuck it," he rounded the desk and sank into the chair, propping his elbows on the table, his face buried in his hands. _Fuck them all_, he thought bitterly.

He was losing it. He could feel the last thread of control over his broiling emotions slipping away. "Move it," he growled, "You're on your own now. Do something, Zala. You've got to start somewhere." He pried his hands away from his face and gazed down at the desk covered in reports and papers. And he felt a sense of dread and helplessness wash over him. With a swipe of his hand, he sent a whole stack of files crashing to the carpeted floor. _Where the fuck was he going to start?_

As if the situation was not tensed enough, he heard a tentative knock at his door. He ignored it, pressing his fingers to his brow, willing whoever it was to go away. When a second knock came, he very nearly blew up. "What the hell do you want?" He yelled. There was a nervous pause before the brass doorknob turned cautiously and the door to his office opened just a slit.

"Chief?" It was Meyrin who put her head around the door. For just a split second, Athrun felt a tinge of guilt when he saw the uneasiness on her face but it vanished as quickly as it came. _He couldn't deal with this shit right now._

"What?" He rapped out, trying to soften the tone in his voice to no avail.

"We… uh…" Meyrin licked her lips nervously, "We, as in the team, we're wondering if you have any orders for us, sir?"

_Orders?_ Athrun nearly laughed out loud. _What orders? _He had been stripped of the authority to issue any orders to his subordinates. At least not for this particular investigation.

"I'm no longer in charge of Lacus' case," he snapped, flipping open a random file on his desk, simply because he didn't know what else to do. "AC Ramius took me off the team. Someone else will be leading the investigation."

"What?" Meyrin exclaimed, and in her surprise, she had flung open the door and Athrun caught sight of the astonished faces of his team members framed in his doorway.

"She can't do that!" Shinn protested. Athrun fixed him with a look of annoyance. "Well," he said, voice dripping with sarcasm, "I think she just did."

Lunamaria stared at him in utter shock. "But who's taking over?"

"I don't know."

"Are we still going to be working on this case, or is another team taking over?"

"I don't know."

"So what are we going to do now?"

"I DON'T KNOW!" Athrun yelled, slamming the file onto his desk and shocking the team into silence. "I don't fucking know, do I?" He snarled, pushing his chair away from the desk and bolting upright. "If I knew I wouldn't be sitting here, would I? You think I don't wanna go out there and find Lacus?" He shoved his chair backwards and stomped over to the full-length glass window that flanked the left side of his office. Situated on the sixteenth floor of the Central Police Headquarters, Athrun did have a spectacular view of the city, especially since the surrounding buildings were relatively low. He had always enjoyed the view, but right now, he hated it. It reminded him of just how big the city was. Just how bleak his hopes were of finding Lacus. He slammed a fist into the glass.

"You are _such_ an idiot, Zala."

Athrun whipped around and stared in disbelief at the silver-haired man leaning against his door, amidst the rest of his dumbstruck subordinates.

"Yzak?" He blurted out.

"Who else do you think I am?" Yzak grunted, pushing himself off the doorframe and stepping into the office. Despite the dire situation, Athrun couldn't help staring at the thin white scar etched across the young man's face. This was the first time he had seen Yzak without the bandage and it stunned him a little to see the lingering consequences of the accident. And he couldn't stop the surge of guilt that ate away at his insides.

"Stop fucking staring at me or I swear I'll make you regret it."

Athrun tore his eyes away to focus instead on the frosty blue eyes staring intently at him.

"I can't believe you're such a loser," Yzak said, "You actually got kicked out by the Assistant Commissioner? Why the hell didn't you fight back?"

"How do you know I didn't fight back?" Surprise and astonishment were now replaced with anger and frustration.

"_Well_," Yzak drawled out sarcastically, "you must have put up such a 'productive' fight, Zala. I'm _so _impressed." He stepped towards Athrun and thrust a hand out at him.

"What?" the blue-haired detective snapped.

Yzak beckoned with his fingers, "So let's see the file."

"_What_ file?"

Yzak shrugged nonchalantly. "The file that states you're no longer in charge of this investigation and tells us who our new chief is."

Athrun slapped his hand away brusquely and brushed past him, heading for the door. "Just get out of my way, Yzak," he bit out, "I've got enough of shit as it is without having you rub it in. Murrue didn't give me any files and she didn't tell me who is in charge-" He stopped all of a sudden, several feet short of the door, then spun around. He didn't see the smiles and grins that lit up the faces of his other teammates but he felt the intense atmosphere lift just a fraction. _There was still hope_.

Yzak Joule was looking at him, head cocked to the side, a slight grin on his face. "Technically speaking," the silver-haired man smiled, "it's not official, until it's in black-and-white. No one informed us that we;re supposed to answer to a new chief. So long as the new chief doesn't report for duty, you're still responsible for us." He shrugged. "Seems like we're still stuck with you, so you better start issuing orders. What do you want us to do first, Chief?"

_Author's note: There! Apologies, everyone, for the delay. I experienced a little writer's block in the middle of the week and I think it's showing in this chapter Definitely not one of the best chapters I've written so far… kind of lousy and shallow… It's like I'm just skimming the surface and narrating what's happening. But, still glad that I could bring Yzak back into the story. Was missing him a little. And I always felt that the dynamics between Yzak and Athrun were kind of strange. It's as if Yzak hates him to the core, but then still respects him… Hmm… correct me if I'm wrong. Hope the next chapter will go much more smoothly! Oh, and don't forget to review, review, review!_


	35. 34

**Chapter 34:**

Lacus flinched when she heard the sound of a door opening. She glanced up quickly but the blindfold obstructed her vision.

There was silence for a moment and whoever it was approached her, his footsteps quiet. Some part of her mind recalled the almost silent footsteps that had approached her from behind in the theatre. _Had it been the same person?_

The footsteps paused close to her and Lacus felt eyes searching her face. _The bastard was watching her._ Refraining from the urge to recoil, she chose to keep her head raised up high in defiance. She almost expected the stranger to hit out at her but instead, she felt gentle fingers behind her head. Startled, she jerked her head out of his grasp and swung her bound legs around, ready to strike out. She had thought about it long and hard - with her hands and feet bound, she wouldn't be able to do much damage, but if she could put her entire weight into the blow, a hundred pounds could at least knock the wind out of her attacker. Bracing against the wall behind her, she readied herself to lob her bound feet in an arc, aiming several feet above the ground where she suspected the man's skull was positioned as he crouched down beside her.

But before she could, Lacus felt the loosening of her blindfold and realised, to her surprise, that it was being undone. The black cloth was slipped away from her face and she felt an unfamiliar coolness against her cheeks.

_What was happening?_

Squinting, she tried to focus on her surroundings and gradually, she could make out the hazy shapes around her. She realised that she was being kept in a small, empty room. No windows. No furniture. Just four grimy walls and a single door. _Her escape route. _

Then she saw him.

Standing to the side, just out of her reach. So that even if she swung her bound legs around, she would only deliver a glancing blow. _He wasn't stupid,_ she thought to herself as her curious eyes roved over her kidnapper. Admittedly, there wasn't much to see. A black bandana covered the bottom of his face and his hair. The upper portion of his face was hidden by a mask that rested snugly upon his cheeks and his eyes were obscured by the tinted lenses of the mask.

He met her gaze unflinchingly.

"What do you want from me?" She whispered. Her voice was hoarse and cracked from disuse and she wondered just how long she had been captive. _Long enough for Cagalli to be found? Long enough for Athrun to be on the case?_

The man didn't reply. He crouched down so that they were level, his eyes fixed on her. The movement of his right hand caught her attention and her eyes flittered downwards. He was stretching to one side, his movements slow and steady, as if he knew any sudden gesture would frighten her. Lacus followed his movements with apprehension and realized that he was reaching for a pack of sandwiches placed at the edge of the grimy wall. She hadn't noticed it there before.

She watched cautiously as he picked up the food. His eyes remained fixed on her as he unwrapped the Clingfilm and held out a sandwich to her.

Lacus didn't think twice. With all her strength, she swung her bound legs at her kidnapper, aiming for his head. For a second, she thought she had got him. Her bound ankles arched through the air, inches away from the man's left cheek. _Surely, the blow would be enough to catch him off guard and knock him to the side. Then she was going to grind her elbow into the bastard's throat and choke him. _But things rarely go according to plans. Lacus felt her shins connect against something hard, but alas, it wasn't the man's skull. He had thrown his arms up to block her attack and when her legs collided against his forearms, a strong hand seized her bound ankles in a vice-like grip.

The momentum caused her to lose her balance and with her legs several feet above ground and her ankles trapped in his grasp, Lacus found herself sliding against the grimy wall behind her and she landed heavily on her side. With the wind knocked out of her, she lay dazed on the dusty floor for several seconds.

"Done?"

Lacus glanced up when she heard the voice and nearly stopped breathing. The stranger was on top of her, balancing himself on his forearms so that he didn't crush her with his weight but giving her so little room as to pin her in position. His masked face was pressed so close to hers that she could feel the warmth of his breath on her cheeks. She stared at the eyes hidden behind the tinted lenses and couldn't help shivering as he glanced down at her with those intense, watchful eyes. She had psyched herself up for the confrontation but all the bravado and courage dissipated as she found herself trapped underneath the stranger's body.

She did the only thing she could and screamed.

"Are you done attacking me?" Her kidnapper responded mildly. The calm voice sliced through her hysterics like a knife through water. All of a sudden, Lacus felt as if her voice had fled her throat. She felt the urge to scream again, for god knew what reason, but she couldn't and she ended up gasping for breath, drawing air into lungs that felt laden with lead.

"If you're done, I'm going to let you up," he said. His voice was gentle and concerned. The black cloth covering his face quivered as he spoke. "And I'll appreciate it if you keep your violent tendencies under control, at least for now, okay?"

Lacus stared at him through wide eyes. She felt as if she couldn't breathe and her heart was thumping almost painfully against her chest. Taking a shuddering breath, she nodded and the man eased off slowly. His eyes were scrutinizing her from behind the mask. Placing his hands gently on her shoulders, he drew her into a sitting position. As soon as he released her, she scooted backwards until her back was against the wall. "What do you want from me?" She rasped out.

The man sat back on his haunches to look at her. He picked up the food that had been flung aside in their scuffle. One of the sandwiches had been tossed onto the mucky floor but the other was still trapped in the Clingfilm. Again, he unwrapped it and raised it to her lips with an encouraging nod. Lacus hesitated, eyeing him warily. _Wasn't he worried that she would kick out at him again? Why would he offer her food in the first place? What the hell was going on?_

He looked at her for a long moment and when she didn't open her mouth, he pulled back and with a hand lifted the edge of the black bandana to expose the corner of his lips. He took a bite, chewed purposefully, swallowed and opened his mouth to show her that he had indeed eaten the sandwich. Then he tilted the bitten sandwich at her and nodded again.

She understood his message – _no poison – _and she hesitated only for a second more before attacking the sandwich ravenously. It felt as if she hadn't eaten in a long time but she wasn't about to dwell on how long she had been held captive. _She needed the food, the energy, if she wanted to escape._

He fed her patiently, holding the sandwichs to her mouth and she devoured each one voraciously. A part of her mind warned her that the rest could have been drugged or poisoned even though the first hadn't but as soon as the first taste of food touched the tip of her tongue, she couldn't seem to stop, not until she was full and could eat no more.

And when she was done, the stranger slipped a hand into his pocket. Lacus flinched but all he removed was a small bottle that he raised to her eye level so that she could see the label. _Aspirin. _

She glanced up at him questioningly. Tapping a finger to his brow, he nodded at her. Lacus hesitated, _what in the world…? _When he tapped a finger to his brow again, she decided to take a gamble and nodded tentatively.

The man returned her nod with an understanding tip of the head and uncapped the bottle, emptying two pills into his palm.

"What do you want from me?" Lacus tried again, but still she received no reply.

He gestured at her mouth. This time, she parted her lips willingly and he placed the pills lightly on her tongue. She drank from a bottle of water that he held to her lips after proving it was harmless by drinking a mouthful himself.

She was taken aback when he unzipped his jacket and covered her with it, tucking it gently under her chin as if she was a young child.

Her hunger and basic needs now satisfied, Lacus took to watching him - this silent stranger, who tended to her patiently and kindly. _Why would he treat his victim with such compassion?_

He knew she was watching him and he met her eyes bravely but the mask obscured his and she longed to see his eyes. Or rather, she longed to see what emotions lay in them. _Would she see the cruelty and malice of a murderer, or would she see tenderness that matched his gentle demeanour?_

She was so engrossed in her thoughts that he surprised her when he stood up, turned on his heel and walked towards the door without a word.

"Wait," she called out before she could stop herself. The stranger glanced over his shoulder at her.

Astounded by her own actions, she bit her lower lip. _What in the world was she planning to say to him? What the hell do you say to your kidnapper?_

He was still looking at her expectantly and she licked her lips. "T-Thank you," she whispered, "for the food, the aspirin and the jacket."

The stranger nodded once and opened the door. It was pitch dark outside and she couldn't see anything beyond the exit.

Throughout his careful ministration, he hadn't spoken a single word, so she was surprised when she heard him speak. "You're safe here. I'm not going to hurt you." His voice was smooth and cultured. Quiet, calm and reassuring. "I need something from your father and when I get it, I'll let you go. That's a promise." He stood in the doorway for a moment and looked at her.

Despite the circumstances, Lacus felt herself being drawn to him, as if she could _really_ put her trust in him, as if he would protect her from harm. And long after the door had closed and he was out of sight, her heart was still beating hard and fast.

_Author's note: Hello! Here's the long-awaited meeting between Lacus and Kira. What do you think about this chapter? Personally, I'm not so sure… I think it's a little strange, especially close to the end. But… oh well… let me know what you think! Review x3!_


	36. 35

_Author's note: Right, here's the next chappie. Sorry the delay, guys. Anyways, I'm a little unsure about this chapter. I think it kind of went completely OOC. But I couldn't think of a better way for Kira and Lacus to interact… hmmm… hope I didn't ruin Auel's character… _

**Chapter 35:**

Nine a.m. Approximately two hours since he had smashed the phone into the ground. Approximately thirty-four more hours left.

Time running short.

Athrun caught the sheet of paper nimbly as it spooled out of the printer and added it to the rapidly rising stack on his desk. His intense emerald eyes glanced down the list of names as fast as he could. _Harry Summers. Estimated age 31. _Athrun stroked it out with a pencil and a ruler. _31 was too old. He was sure they were in their early twenties. Next, Hamano Peterson. Estimated age 22. Possible. _He stared hard at the grainy photograph. It showed a little boy – the last picture his parents had had before he went missing – with bright blue eyes.

"_The only thing I saw were his eyes… and, I don't know, Athrun. I feel like I've seen those eyes before. They're purple, dark purple."_

Not Hamano Peterson then. Athrun crossed him out and went on to the next.

"Chief?"

"What?" he rapped out, not bothering to glance up from his list.

Meyrin winced. "Are you sure this is going to work?" she scrolled down the list with her mouse. Names flashed across her screen at lightning pace. "There are more than ten thousand missing people entered into the database each year. We're covering two to three years' worth of information. That's close to thirty thousand entries."

_And that's only the tip of the iceberg_, Athrun thought. They were sweating the details, poring over the smallest, slightest clues. A part of him knew this was the least efficient solution, but hell, all the other trails had gone cold. He needed something. Just _something_. He pointed his pencil at her, "then we better quit talking, get a move on our asses and keep working. Give me the next set of names, Meyrin."

"Boss, we're only at letter 'H'," she said. She looked like she was about to cry. "By the time we get this thing done, Lacus'll probably…"

"Just print it, Meyrin."

"Boss…"

Athrun looked hard at her.

The printer whirled to life again. Alongside it came the shrill ring of the telephone. He stabbed at the speaker button with his index finger, not taking his eyes off the list in front of him. "Update me," he said curtly. Shinn's voice emanated through the speaker. "Boss, we've got Jeremy Baxter with us in the theatre. Do you want to speak to him?"

Athrun was already moving. He grabbed his keys and holstered his weapon. "Be there in five," he said before cutting off the connection with another stab of his thumb. "Keep working on it, Meyrin. Give me _something_."

* * *

"Here."

Kira glanced up at the voice. Stellar was standing over him, with a faint smile playing across her lips. She held out something to him and he realised that it was a custard bun wrapped in plastic. "Thanks," he muttered, receiving it gratefully. Stellar just nodded in response and sat down on the ground beside him. Tucking her knees to her chest, she turned concerned magenta eyes on him and watched as he ripped open the plastic and devoured the bun mechanically.

"Sting told us you were upset," she said softly.

He stared straight ahead at the blank dusty wall across the room and concentrated on eating. _Bite, chew, swallow. Bite, chew, swallow._

"Is something bothering you?"

He tore off a hunk of bread with his teeth.

"You're starting to scare me a little, Kira."

He turned his head to look at her. Stellar was curled up, her knees under her chin. Her magenta eyes were searching the floor and Kira caught a glimpse of the shine in her eyes. Tears. "I'm sorry," he muttered, turning away. _You fuck up everyone you're close to, asshole,_ he thought to himself. _It was the case for Flay, and now it was happening again for Stellar._

"No," she whispered, "it's just that I wish I could help."

He didn't reply to that. He didn't know how to. All he could do was reach over and pick up a bottle of water. He unscrewed the cap and downed it quickly so that he didn't feel the need to say something.

"Sometimes, do you wish you were normal?"

He paused in his drinking and lowered the bottle, glancing at her. She was looking at him intently.

"All the time," he said, "all the time."

They were quiet for a spell. Just sitting together, their arms brushing against each other lightly. Taking what little comfort they could from each other. Kira broke the silence first. "Where's Auel and Sting?"

"Auel was complaining that he was bored. I think they both went to see Lacus Clyne."

The plastic bottle slipped from Kira's fingers and fell to the ground. Water pooled on the dusty floor as he stared at her. Then he got to his feet and ran.

* * *

Athrun got a deafening horn and _the_ finger as he rounded the bend at a harrowing speed, narrowly missing the bumper of a blue Cadillac. He ignored it and concentrated on weaving his way through the morning hour traffic. He wasn't a reckless driver and he wasn't suicidal. He had been on so many car chases through the urban city that he had honed his driving skills to perfection.

He raced down the street, swerved to overtake a crawling truck and spun his wheel. The car veered sharply and turned right. Tyres screeched wildly as they struggled to grip the asphalt.

His cell rang. With a hand rock steady on the wheel, he fumbled through the glove department with the other, searching for his earpiece. He found it and fitted it into his ear. "Zala," he rapped out.

"I just met Nicol and he told me the situation. You want me to trace the manufacturers?" Miriallia Haw sounded incredulous.

"Is it possible?"

"Why?"

"I want to know how, when and where the chemicals you found in the blood sample were produced. The manufacturer, the time of manufacturing, the place, the importer, whatever. Can you do that?"

"It's not impossible. All companies produce the same chemical with slight variations in their formula and each batch of chemicals produced differs very slightly in the percentage of its components. It's inevitable. So yes, it is traceable."

"Okay," said Athrun as he steered into the left lane, "I need the information asap, Miriallia."

"l'll do my best."

The line clicked off as Athrun rammed his foot into the accelerator.

Time running short.

* * *

The first thing Kira did after he had burst through the door was to rip off the body lying atop Lacus Clyne. He slammed Auel back into the wall. "What the fuck are you doing?" he snarled.

Auel was wearing a mask but it didn't hide the crazed look on his face. His cerulean pupils were dilated and had turned into a dark shade of blue. He was laughing. _At least he had the sense to don a mask before he entered,_ Kira thought bitterly. "Aw, Kira," Auel sniggered, "welcome to the party!" He whooped, throwing his arms upwards and knocking Kira aside. "I was just about to taste her. We can share if you like! I've got dibs on-" He didn't finish his sentence as Kira floored him with a punch.

Auel just lay on the ground and laughed. "Man," he hiccupped, staring up at his attacker, "you pack such a punch, Kira. I never knew you were so violent in sex." He dissolved into giggles, squirming about on the dusty floor.

Kira whipped around and stared at Sting in disbelief. His green-haired accomplice was leaning against the wall, arms crossed. Mask in place. Looking completely unconcerned and uninterested.

"Why the fuck didn't you stop him?"

"You know Auel's unstoppable when he's like that," Sting shrugged, grinning, "Restlessness is his tragic flaw."

"I don't care," spat Kira. "Just get him out of here. If he puts one foot through this door again, I'm not going to be responsible for what happens to him."

"Sheesh," Sting grimaced, "You're in a foul mood."

Kira fixed him with an icy glare.

"Okay, okay," Sting put up both hands in a placating gesture. "I'll get him." He sauntered towards the fallen man and hooked an arm through his. "Come on, lover boy," he smiled, pulling the still laughing Auel to his feet. The pale blue-haired man protested but Sting wrapped an arm around his waist and manhandled him out the door.

Kira watched them disappear into the dimly lit passageway, then slammed the door unceremoniously. He wanted so much to smash his fist into something. Maybe the door. But he figured that would splinter the wood and leave an unwanted hole in it. Instead, he lifted a hand and touched the mask on his face to make sure it was in place before he turned to face the woman lying on the ground.

Her pink hair was caked with dirt and the dress she had been wearing – a pale pink and white knee-length dress – was covered in dust. The hem of her dress had been hiked up her thigh and the sleeve had been ripped off its seams. With her hands and feet still bound, she had no way of getting up.

Kira spotted the jacket and crossed over the room to it. It had been balled up and flung aside. He dusted it off as best as he could and returned to Lacus Clyne with it. Averting his eyes politely, he wrapped the jacket around her and pulled her up into a sitting position. She was shivering. Form the cold or the fear, he didn't know. He lifted his gaze to her face and saw the lingering fear in her blue-grey eyes. She was watching him, but not with apprehension. He was surprised to see a hint of relief in the tear-filled eyes.

"Thank you," she whispered.

He didn't reply. Just nodded and leaned her against the wall so that she had some leverage and balance.

"You okay?"

She tilted her head in a slight nod. Dust-filled hair slipped down and covered her face. Hesitantly, he brushed the dull pink locks away and tucked them behind her ear.

"Thank you," she whispered again.

He left her sitting, as comfortably as she could get, and retreated into a corner, watching her. She didn't look hurt. No doubt shaken, but not hurt.

"Why did you save me?" Her voice was hoarse and it quivered a little.

Kira shrugged. "We're not rapists."

She was quiet for a spell, then her pale, parched lips cracked into a faint smile. "How can you be so cold and distant, yet so humane?"

"We all have _issues_," Kira said. She stared at him. "It'll be better for you to keep on the _right_ side of us," he warned.

"So I'm in the hands of psychopaths?" Lacus pointed out.

He laughed at that. It was a pleasant sound. Not filled with malice or derision. Just plain laughter, like he found her question amusing.

"Perhaps," he said, shrugging. "But I prefer to call them side effects."

"Side effects?" Lacus repeated, a puzzling frown creasing her brow. "Side effects of what?"

He shrugged again.

"What kind of side effects?"

"If I told you, I'll be letting you know our weaknesses," he smiled. It was the first time Lacus had seen him smiling, especially since he didn't have the black bandana to cover the lower half of his face. And she was mesmerized by it. In her current situation, it seemed completely out of place. It didn't look like the smile of a murderer.

"Was he on drugs?" she asked tentatively.

"We don't do drugs."

"Then why did he-"

"He gets restless easily, and whenever he gets restless, he looks for something to entertain himself with," Kira shrugged his shoulders. "Usually it's sex, when he can find himself a target."

Lacus went quiet.

"But the other man-"

"Sex isn't his thing," Kira grinned, "If you were a man, he might find it a thrill to take you down. He enjoys a fight."

"There was a woman."

"Don't underestimate her," he said, "she has her own _issues_, but she's every bit the assassin."

There was silence as Lacus Clyne processed the information. Then she glanced up at him and looked away again. Like she was struggling with herself. He could see the question at her lips. He knew what she was going to ask and he waited patiently for it.

"And what is _your_ problem?" she asked. She was whispering, as if afraid to know the answer.

Kira just smiled. "You don't want to know."

There was silence for a moment. Kira watched the fear play across her pale face. Then she looked him straight in the eye. She was psyching herself up. "Tell me, please."

Kira smiled. "I have a taste and hunger for killing."

_Author's note: So, what do you think? Is it bad? Good? *wince and smile hopefully* Don't forget to review and let me know what you think. And I know, my updates are coming at a much slower pace. So sorry, guys, but I've been incredibly busy over the past week and if that is even possible, I'll be even busier in the following weeks. Bear with me, guys. I'll update as soon as I can!_


	37. 36

_Author's note: FINALLYYYYYYYYYYYYY! So sorry for the long hiatus, guys, but I was incredibly busy over the past few weeks. Still am, but at least I managed to grab a few seconds here and there. Here's a longer than normal chapter to make up for the delayed update. Will promise to get the next chapter up in the upcoming weeks! Bear with me, guys!_

**Chapter 36:**

There was a patch on the wooden flooring that was stained dark maroon. Athrun crouched down so that he could get a better look. "Has forensics confirmed the identity?" He said, without glancing up. He heard Shinn's approach, his footsteps sounding hollow and heavy on the wooden floorboards. Shinn said, "The report came in this morning. The blood belongs to Cagalli Yamato and it corresponds to the chauffeur's statement. He found her lying unconscious right here."

"Okay."

Athrun straightened and turned to look at the young man perched on a high stool in front of a dressing table. Lunamaria was standing alongside him, her back against the table and the clipboard balanced between her hand and her hip. "You were the last person who saw Lacus and Cagalli before the incident?" she asked the man.

Jeremy winced and shrugged, "I guess so."

"Who else was in the theatre when you left?"

"No one else," The young actor shook his head. "Lacus and Cagalli were the only ones left. They're always the last to leave."

"Okay," Luna scribbled something on her clipboard. "Did you leave by the front entrance or the back?"

"Front. I saw Lacus' car and her chauffeur was waiting on the main street. I even stopped to greet him."

"What time was that?"

"I'm not sure. Maybe 7:30?"

Athrun nodded to himself. It sounded right. It corresponded with the chauffeur's statement. He asked, "Did you see any other vehicles around?"

Jeremy thought for a moment, then shook his head. "I'm not sure. The main street is always full of cars. I didn't pay attention."

Luna began to ask another question but Athrun turned away, directing his interest elsewhere. _Jeremy wasn't the man he was looking for._ _There was no way. _His statement coincided with the chauffeur's; the actor had alibis. Jeremy had gone out the front entrance, and since the kidnappers couldn't have dragged Lacus out onto the main street, they had to have used the back door. There was no opportunity, no means, no motives. So Jeremy wasn't the guy and he wasn't much of a witness either.

Athrun swiveled around on the spot and glanced around the dressing room. Nothing looked out of place, except for the blood stain on the wooden boards. There was no upset furniture, no signs of a struggle taking place. He thought about what Cagalli had said. She had seen one of the kidnappers collapse but where? Why?Scanning the ceiling, he found no security cameras. Dead-end.

He exited the dressing room and stepped out into a narrow corridor that led out to the back. He could hear Luna and Jeremy conversing in the dressing room, their voices now reverberating through the place like echoes. The National Theatre was flanked in the back by an alley and the concrete side of a commercial building. Which meant no witnesses saw them from a window.

Athrun stepped out into the alley and glanced about him. There was a security camera mounted on the back door but it had been removed by the crime scene techs. He had little hope that the technicians would find anything useful amongst the footage. Crouching down, he ran his eyes over the asphalt concrete. The ground was cracked and worn out. No visible tyre tracks.

_Shit_.

He stood and checked his watch. _9:45 a.m. Time was running out._ He dug into his pocket for his cell and dialed a number, keeping half an eye on his surroundings. Yzak Joule picked up on the second ring.

"Yzak, you there yet?"

"_Yeah. I just got on post."_

Athrun nodded, pleased. "Okay. You got the vial?"

"_I'm eyeballing it right now as I'm speaking to you."  
_

"Okay," Athrun said again, "I trust you not to let it out of your sight, Yzak."

"_Okay."_

"I mean it, Yzak. Don't let it out of your sight at all," He repeated, "Once they get their hands on the drug, they'll kill her. So you need to make sure it's safe."

There was a loud sigh on the other end of the phone. "I got it," Yzak snapped. His voice was full of contempt and impatience. Athrun could just picture the scowl on the silver-haired detective's face. "The injury hasn't made me lose my touch, you bastard. I've got the safehouse completely surrounded and the boys are forming a mile-wide radius. There are dozens of eyes fixed on the damn glass tube right now. I've got it under control, asshole." Then Yzak demonstrated just how annoyed he was by hanging up on him.

Athrun stared at the blank screen of his cell and shook his head. Then blinked as the screen lit up again and the cell vibrated urgently in his palm. The caller ID showed that it was from the office. _Meyrin_. _Maybe she had a lead._ He punched the button with his thumb and lifted the cell to his ear. "Update me, Meyrin."

"_Boss, we have a problem,"_ the voice on the other end of the phone hesitated, _"I think you should come back to the station right __away__."_

* * *

Lacus Clyne felt her blood run cold as she ran the words she had heard through her mind again.

_I have a taste and hunger for killing_.

Oh god, she was in the hands of a manic serial killer? She could feel her heartbeat quicken as panic threatened to overwhelm her. Why was he telling her these awful things? Just an intimidation technique? Perhaps there was nothing to fear. They were just empty threats.

But there was equal possibility that he was warning her of an imminent death.

No… if he was going to kill her, he wouldn't still be wearing the mask. Dead people didn't talk. Dead people didn't give the police physical descriptions of their murderers. The fact that they were still keeping their faces hidden from her meant that there was still a chance of survival. A slim chance, but still a chance nonetheless.

_How could someone be so gentle, yet so cruel at the same time?_

She couldn't reconcile the person standing in front of her with the soft-spoken man who had offered her food, water and warmth.

And danced with her.

Yes, she was pretty sure it was him.

_Kira. _

She had heard the man with pale blue hair call out his name. Was she staring at the man who had taken her into his arms as they twirled across the dance floor? Kira Hibiki? Or was she making assumptions? She remembered what Athrun had said once: _"When it happens the first time, okay. The second time, okay. The third time? Not okay. There are no such things as coincidences."_

How long were the odds that the man who had danced with her the night of the break-in had the same name as her kidnapper? It couldn't be a coincidence. She didn't know many men with the name 'Kira'. The only other Kira she knew had… disappeared fifteen years ago. They grew up together, and then one day, he was just plucked right out of her life. And was never seen again.

Could this Kira be the Kira that she knew? Had he finally turned up fifteen years later?

It didn't make any sense. Why was he after the drug? Why kidnap her?

No, this was surely a coincidence.

Yet, as she looked up at his brown hair and his slender figure, she could almost see Cagalli's brother self-imposed on him. The Kira she had known all her life, had frozen as an image of a seven-year old boy. The seven-year old Kira she remembered too had soft brown hair like that.

The Kira she knew had soft, gentle amethyst eyes that gazed upon her with affection. And so did the man who had held her close during the dance. Only, his had been sadder, lonelier. Perhaps darker. She wished she could see the eyes behind the mask. The tinted glass distorted the colour of her kidnapper's eyes. They could be azure, or dark grey. She couldn't tell.

There was a possibility that they were amethyst too.

_Could it be?  
_

She needed to know more about him before she could make a conclusion. Lacus wet her dry and parched lips with the tip of her tongue. He was watching her do it, his eyes following the maneuver of her tongue behind the tinted glass. So she sat up and stared him squarely in the eye. Lacus forced mock bravado into her voice. "You gave me food and water. You lent me your jacket. I'm convinced that you're not a cold-blooded murderer."

He surprised her when he burst out laughing. Lacus stared as laughter filled the otherwise silent room. It wasn't exactly cruel laughter, she could tell, but he looked genuinely amused by what she had said.

It took a while for him to settle and even then, there was an amused quirk at his lips. "I don't think the people I've killed would agree with you," He grinned.

Lacus shrugged. _Keep him talking, keep him with you, _she thought to herself_. _She forced a smile, "Why killing? Why not something else?"

Kira stared at her. He couldn't believe she was asking him such a question. The woman had guts; he would give her that. Most women he knew would be shrieking their heads off if they found themselves in a situation like that, but Lacus Clyne had been calm. A little shaken by her encounter with Auel. But still calm. And apparently, in a mood to hold a conversation with her kidnapper. He smiled inwardly. She was a smart woman. He knew she was fishing for information and trying to gauge just how much trouble she was in. You probably could learn a lot of things about dealing with emergencies when your adopted brother was a cop, and a good one at that.

But Kira wasn't in a mood to engage in a conversation. He was pretty sure that there had to be a rule against talking too much to your victim. He knew he should have walked right out the door as soon as he had made sure Lacus Clyne was alright. Every second he spent in the room with her increased the risk of exposing his identity. But Kira couldn't get himself to move. He couldn't stay in there, but he couldn't walk out and deal with a crazed Auel, or a skeptical Sting, or a concerned Stellar either. At least not at this point in time. He had nowhere else to go.

So he found himself backed into a corner, as far away from Lacus Clyne as he could get, his arms crossed in front of his chest in a defensive stance.

"Why killing?" She asked again.

Kira shrugged. "Why broadway?" he rebutted, "Why singing and dancing and performing?"

He didn't expect her to answer his question but she did. "I didn't have much of a choice," She smiled, "it came naturally to me." She was amused by his question. Her smile looked completely at odds with her dirt-streaked face and her disheveled pink locks. Kira tried to picture her on stage, an elegant black dress flaunting her perfect figure, its train trailing behind her. Just like the three-storey length publicity poster hanging outside the National Theatre. Her luscious pink hair clean and beautiful, cascading over her bare shoulders, a stray curl brushing against her rosy cheek. Her blue-grey eyes sparkling. Those full lips curling into that same smile. She would look heavenly.

_There was something seriously wrong with him. _

"So," she said, interrupting his thoughts, "I've answered your question, right? It's only fair that you answer mine. Why killing?"

"I didn't have much of a choice. It came naturally to me," Kira echoed after her. The smile on Lacus' face faded a little. She looked taken aback by his reply. There was a hint of surprise. Maybe disappointment.

Or maybe repulsion.

He looked away from those inquiring, accusatory blue-grey eyes and glanced quickly at his watch. Then he turned on his heel and headed for the door.

"Are you leaving?" Lacus asked surprised, and a little anxious. She could feel him slipping back into his steel armor - cold and distant, losing interest, mind set on something more important. "What if he comes back?" She ventured.

He opened the door and stepped out into the long, dark passageway. It was 9:30 a.m. _Thirty-three and a half more hours to go. Time to get back to work._ "You'll be fine here," Kira tossed over his shoulder without turning back, then he shut the door and forced himself to walk away.

* * *

The voice and laughter had carried down the hallway. The moment the lift doors opened, Athrun had heard it. And recognized it.

And he didn't like it one bit.

Heart sinking, Athrun strode down the corridor briskly, Shinn and Luna struggling to catch up behind him.

"Oh, there you are!"

He stopped dead in his tracks just as he stepped into the department and was caught by surprise when a hand thumped him hard on his back. He whirled around and came face-to-face with Yuna Roma Seiran.

_Shit_.

"I was wondering why you took so long," Seiran shook his head. There was an obnoxious smirk on his face.

"Traffic," Athrun hissed through his teeth. He took a deep breath, let it out slowly and asked, "What do you want, Seiran?"

The purple-haired man looped around him, slid into an empty cubicle and sank into the leather chair behind the desk. He swung both legs up onto the table and leaned back, wiggling about to get comfortable. Athrun narrowed his eyes at the newcomer. "I don't know," Seiran shrugged and grinned, flashing white teeth at Athrun, "AC Ramius told me to meet her here, but she hasn't turned up yet. Bosses!" He heaved a loud, exaggerated sigh. "They're always making you wait, right?" He grinned at Athrun again.

Athrun didn't reciprocate. With a hand, he swept Seiran's feet off the desk. "Well, make yourself comfortable elsewhere, Seiran," He said mildly, "I'm sorry I can't be a better host, but we've got work to do." He stepped away and turned to Meyrin, who was standing behind her desk with a look of helplessness.

"Don't tell me the crisis you were referring to on the phone was Seiran," he muttered. "You got me out of the theatre just for this?"

Meyrin didn't get a chance to reply because Seiran sat up in the chair suddenly. The springs creaked and protested against the sudden movement. Athrun turned. "The theatre?" Seiran exclaimed eagerly. "Are you talking about the Lacus Clyne case? Man, I heard from the boys downstairs that she got herself kidnapped and when I got up to my office, I saw the file sitting on my desk. Then my secretary told me that AC Ramius wanted to see me up here. Gosh!" He peered at Athrun through small, suspicious eyes. "You screwed it up, didn't you, Zala? That's why AC Ramius wants me to take over the case."

Athrun stared at him in disbelief. _No way. There was no way Murrue would be stupid enough to ask an asshole like Seiran to take over the case_.

Seiran was an exemplary model of everything a cop shouldn't be. The guy was an absolute idiot – a moron spelled with a capital letter 'M'. He wouldn't have made it so far in the agency if he wasn't the nephew of the Commissioner. And if he didn't have a pack of mules to fix the shit he caused each time.

Athrun clamped his jaw tight together and hissed through his teeth, "Get out of my department and wait elsewhere."

"No can do," Seiran grinned again as he swung his feet back up onto the desk. "AC Ramius' orders. You know I can't disobey them."

"Just get out-"

"Good. You're here too, Detective Zala."

Interrupted, Athrun turned towards the entrance. Murrue Ramius was approaching them with a purposeful stride. "I've got another meeting in ten, so I'm gonna make this real quick." She glanced at Seiran who had bolted from his seat at the first sight of her. "Detective Seiran will be taking over Lacus Clyne's case starting from now. Have you seen the file? I left it on your desk."

"Yes, Ma'am," Seiran gave a mock salute. Athrun stared at him with absolute disdain and her with absolute disbelief. His heart sank and his mind went into overdrive. _Yuna Roma Seiran was pure trouble. Putting him in charge of the case meant that Lacus was in danger. _

_In a lot of danger. _

"If you'll excuse me, I'll just get on with briefing my team then," Seiran grinned and took a step towards the entrance but Murrue stopped him with a raised hand. "No need," she said, "this case is top priority right now. There's no time for these niceties. Athrun's team will be backing you up."

Athrun barely registered what she had said, until Shinn exclaimed a loud and blunt, "WHAT?"

"You heard me, Shinn," Murrue turned to him with a no-nonsense look on her face, "Detective Seiran will be your temporary chief for now. Like I said, this case has attracted the attention of the Commissioner and is now top priority. I expect you to do your utmost best to solve the case. I want these perpetrators locked up for good and Lacus safe and sound. Got that?"

"And what am I supposed to do while Seiran takes control over my team?" Athrun demanded.

Murrue turned to him. "Seiran's team is at your disposal, if you require their assistance," she said, "you could make use of the time to catch up on the paperwork and do up your reports."

"That's great," Athrun smiled bitterly, "So I've basically been demoted to a clerk."

"Don't put words in my mouth, Detective Zala," Murrue snapped, glowering at him, "You need to take a time-out, detective." She stared at him long and hard, then turned on her heels and headed for the lift lobby. Athrun chased her out into the corridor. "Ma'am!" He demanded, "I don't understand. You could have assigned any other detective to the case. Why Seiran?"

"Direct orders from the Commisioner, Detective Zala," Murrue glanced over her shoulder at him, an annoyed expression on her face. "Nothing I said could change his mind. He's being pressured to let Detective Seiran have his go at the case." She made a move to press the lift button but Athrun got in her way.

"So give him another case! Why this case in particular?"

"Because there's fame and recognition involved. Lacus is an eminent actress whose father is a billionaire. It's the perfect chance for him to prove himself." Murrue sidestepped him and jammed her thumb into the lift button.

"You're kidding, right?" Athrun asked exasperated. "You can't send a moron like that into the battlefield."

Murrue stood back and stared at him. Her eyebrows were deeply furrowed and there was a hint of impatience and frustration in her eyes. She crossed her wrists and shoved them under Athrun's nose. "Look," she snapped, "my hands are tied too. I can't disobey the Commissioner's orders. When I got the news, I immediately requested that the rest of your team back him up. At least they understand the case. At least they've been following up. Would you rather Seiran brought in his own team of clowns? I don't think so! So I've already done the best damage control I can!"

Athrun opened his mouth to rebuke but he was interrupted by the opening of the lift doors. Murrue shoved past him into the lift and made a stab at the buttons before he could follow her. The doors closed and Athrun was left standing alone in the hallway. The doors didn't open even when he slammed both fists into them.

_Author's note: There! What do you think? Hope I haven't lost my touch after this delayed update. Anyway, like I always say, don't forget to review, review, review and let me know what you think? Oh, and a little clarification, Kira is supposed to be around twenty-one or two years old here. I realised that there was some little miscalculation in some of my previous chapters, but hope you'll ignore those errors!_


	38. 37

_Author's note: Hey one and all, finally the next chapter is up. Many apologies for the delay! I was simply so busy that I couldn't get my hands on a computer to write! It's a little long (hope that will pacify you a little) with a bit more action in it. So read on and hope you like it!_

_To natsumexmikan43vr: Thanks so much for the support! I'm very glad that you enjoy this particular fic so much. To keep the reader in suspense and thinking about the various possibilities, that's what I think is the ultimate aim of a thriller writer! I hope to achieve that one day. So, hope this chapter is as enjoyable as the rest!_

_To Yuriski-1st: Ok, I have to admit, I've been trying to put Mu in because I like the guy too, but I can't seem to fit him in anywhere. I'm still trying!_

_To Guest: Thank you for the support! Glad I could finally get a new chapter up! And so sorry for the delay again this time._

_To predator64: Yup, I'm hoping to continue the band fiction, but that will likely to be after this fic is complete, because the two fanfics are of such different styles so it's a little difficult for me to be fun and humorous in one and serious and angsty in the other. But I'm definitely not discontinuing it! About the confusing scenarios, maybe you could pinpoint me to a particular example? I know, sometimes, as I'm writing the fic, I get a little confused about some parts too and I do realize that some of the details are either miswritten or left out. So yeah… but I think, as the writer, I tend to assume that the readers know certain things because I know it. Haha, I think that's the biggest challenge of being an action thriller writer. So would really appreciate it if you could direct me to some of the confusing parts? As for the filter, I really wanted to, but there are a couple of pairings here and there, so I couldn't quite decide. I'll think about it some more!_

_To naruto girl: Thanks for the support and so sorry to always make you guys wait! Promise I'll do my best to speed up!_

**Chapter 37:**

Kira ducked the roundhouse kick that came at his head the moment he walked through the door. He missed it by mere inches and a clenched fist swung at him from below, aiming an uppercut at his chin. There was enough aggression behind it to shatter his jaw if it had landed, but Kira stopped it easily with his palm. "Glad to see you're back to your old self again," he commented dryly, staring back into livid azure blue eyes.

"You asshole! I can't believe you actually hit me!" Auel snarled, trying to wrench his wrist out of Kira's vice-like grip. Kira remained unfazed. He reached out easily and took Auel's chin in his free hand, turning his face around so that he could eye the pale purple bruise blossoming spectacularly along the younger man's left jaw. "You'll live," Kira smiled.

Auel pouted and pulled away. "Of course I'll live," he sniffed irritably, "but you could have punched me in the stomach. Why my face? Now you've just ruined my dating prospects!"

Kira laughed as he released his hold on Auel. "I don't think so," he said, stepping into the room. He exchanged a glance with Sting, who was leaning against the wall with a twinkle of amusement in his eyes. "I thought the ladies are usually charmed by your bad-boy attitude," the green-haired man smirked. Auel shot him a vicious look, which didn't seem to put Sting off because he continued nonetheless. Glancing over at Stellar who was perched on a chair in front of the computers, he said, "Besides, Stellar doesn't seem to mind. And since you've already got your eyes set on-"

"Shut up!" Auel dove towards him and clamped his hand over his teammate's mouth. Kira watched, amused, as Stellar blushed and looked away. He gave the two guys several seconds to wrestle and struggle, then put an end to it by clearing his throat. "Enough with the fooling around," he said, "time we got back to work."

* * *

Seiran raised his arms above his head and stretched. His mouth widened in a large, grotesque yawn and Athrun had to clench his fists to resist the urge to punch the man's teeth down his throat.

"Shouldn't you get a move on?" He ground out through his teeth.

"Relax, Athrun," the obnoxious bastard gave him an annoying grin. He caught the back of a chair in one hand, turned it backwards and settled down comfortably on it, with his arms folded across the back. "We've still got thirty-six hours. Let me get to know my team first."

Athrun shoved his watch into the Seiran's face. "Look," he spat, "it's 10:45 a.m. You don't have thirty-six hours. You only have thirty-two. So get your ass moving." Seiran caught his wrist in a hand and peered at the watch face curiously. "So it seems," he drawled, "But actually it's thirty-two hours and fifteen minutes."

Athrun seized Seiran's shirt, bunching the front in his fists, and hauled the surprised man off the chair. "Shut up, Seiran," he barked. "This is _your_ case now, so you better get it going. Move, NOW!" He released Seiran, giving him a hard shove backwards. The expression on Seiran's face would have been comical, under different circumstances. Athrun would have loved to see it. But right now, he wanted nothing more than to rearrange Seiran's face.

"Alright, alright," Seiran put up a hand to placate him, the other smoothing down his creased business shirt. "Don't get your knickers in a twist, Zala. Look what you did to my shirt. This is 100% cotton. It's difficult to iron-"

Athrun advanced on him.

"Okay, okay," Seiran raised both hands. "I'm getting started. Where's your sense of humour?" He glanced around the room. "Well, for starters, let's head down to the crime scene. I want to have a look at the theatre."

"We just returned from there," Shinn protested.

"Good," Seiran gave one of his signature grins again, "then you know how to drive back. So let's go!"

"All of us?" Meyrin asked in disbelief.

"Yup," he smiled, "we can get to know each other on the way. Let's go!"

Athrun stepped into the way of his path. "We don't have time for this, Seiran!" he snapped, "There's nothing left to be found at the crime scene. Besides, sending the whole team there is of no use. What we should do is to look at the other clues. Listen, I've got Miriallia Haw looking at a chemical trace we discovered at the Clyne Mansion. We need to follow up on that. And look at the missing persons database. There must be a clue there. Maybe lots of children of the same age went missing and were never found. We need to confirm the identity of the guy called Kira Hibiki. Maybe he's one of the missing kids. And we have to keep the vial away from them at all cost, because if they get-"

"There is no 'we'," Seiran interrupted smoothly, "you've been reassigned, Zala."

Athrun recoiled as if he had been slapped in the face.

"So, this case is none of your concern now," Seiran continued, "I appreciate your help though. Tell you what, I'll be sure to consider your suggestions. Now, let's move out."

"Seiran-" Athrun said threateningly.

"Zala," the other detective grinned, "You're holding us up. You're the one who kept nagging at me for not moving, and now that I am, you're in my way." He rested a hand on Athrun's shoulder and propelled him aside gently. "Make up your mind, Athrun."

"As for the rest of you," he smirked, turning to the rest of the stunned team, "don't just stand there. Go get the cars and let's head out."

* * *

Kira saw them leave.

They got into two unmarked sedans – two of them in the first car and three in the next.

Sting lifted the screen of his laptop and began to read. "Dearka Elsman. He's the blond guy in the driver's seat. First vehicle."

Kira nodded without taking his eyes off the company of five.

"IT expert," Sting continued, "Former member of the Cyber Division. Joined Athrun Zala's Special Unit three years ago. The red-head behind him is Meyrin Hawke. She's Athrun Zala's secretary. Fresh out of grad school and newest addition to the team," Sting smiled, "therefore, not much of a threat." He paused and using his index finger, dabbed at the 'down arrow' of his laptop to scroll.

"She's got a sister in the Special Unit too." He glanced up from his screen and nodded towards the second vehicle. Kira followed his gaze and saw another red-haired woman slide into the driver's seat of the second vehicle. Her hair was worn short, just as how Kira remembered her.

_The two sisters who had been part of the team manning the entrance of the Clyne Mansion. The younger one with the ponytails who had blushed at him, and the elder one with more experience and maturity, and hadn't quite succumbed to his charm._

"The sister's name is Lunamaria Hawke. Research specialist. Former member of the Information and Technology Division. Transferred over two years ago. The guy in the passenger seat, with the green hair, is Nicol Amalfi. Expert in forensics. Used to be one of the crime scene techs until Athrun Zala pulled him out to join his team. Guy with the black hair is Shinn Asuka. Cracked several major cases when he was just a junior detective. Has a reputation for being hot-headed and rash. Says here that he was nearly dismissed but he caught Athrun Zala's eye and was transferred over to the Special Unit."

Sting glanced up and peered out of the windscreen. They had an unobstructed view of the carpark that bordered the right side of the Police Headquarters. Auel had steered the van into a side street that ran perpendicular to the main road and they were backed up to the point where they were obscured behind an office building, the only visible part of the van was its front bumper.

"There's a guy missing," Sting frowned, "Yzak Joule. Silver hair. Firearms expert. Former member of the Firearms Unit. He was transferred over alonside Dearka Elsman."

Kira nodded. He had expected that: someone had to be guarding the vial. He shifted as Auel leaned over and pressed his face close to the glass. "Athrun Zala isn't there either," he pointed out. "Where're they all going? They're moving around full force without their leader?"

Kira said nothing. He didn't have a clue. _Where were they headed? Why mobilize the whole team? _It didn't make sense. It didn't seem like what Athrun Zala would do. It was a waste of manpower, and the Special Unit was only seven-man strong. He watched them climb into their cars and fire up the engines. The first sedan eased out of the parking lot with Dearka Elsman behind the wheel and Meyrin Hawke in the back passenger seat. The front passenger seat was left empty.

_They were picking someone up_, Kira thought. His guess was proven right when the first unmarked sedan swung around the bend and got onto the main road. It slid into place outside the entrance of the Police Headquarters and stopped. The second sedan coasted to a halt smoothly behind it.

_Probably Athrun Zala_, he thought to himself.

But he was only half right.

Athrun Zala stepped through the double glass doors of the Police Headquarters, but he didn't get into the car. There was a man who exited the building with him and it was he who slid into the front passenger seat beside Dearka Elsman.

And Kira nearly laughed out loud when he recognized the purple-haired man.

"Is that who I think it is?" Auel muttered.

Kira nodded in response. _Yuna Roma Seiran_. They had crossed paths with the detective a couple of times. The man had been in charge of several cases in which Kira's team had been involved, but the guy had never caught on. Not even close. He had let them slip right under his nose. Every single time.

"Don't tell me he's in charge of this case," Sting let out a snort of laughter, "What's this? Are they underestimating us or are they trying to make our job easier?"

Auel laughed and they began to recall the incidences when Yuna Roma Seiran had walked right past them without sparing them a second glance.

But Kira didn't participate. He kept his eyes trained on Athrun Zala. The detective stood on the edge of the road, his hands shoved deep into the pockets of his jacket. He looked a little crestfallen, following the two sedans with his gaze as they left the curb. He stood there for a long moment, before turning abruptly and retracing his steps back into the building.

Auel shifted the gear into 'drive', lifted his foot off the brake and the van began to move.

"Head back to base," Kira said.

The van jammed to a sudden halt as Auel slammed his foot into the pedal.

"Aren't we following them?" He asked in disbelief. Even Sting turned around to glance at Kira, mute surprise in his eyes.

"No," he replied simply. He leaned back into his seat and settled down for the ride. "We're heading back," he repeated.

"But why? The plan was to shadow them and see what they know about us," Auel demanded.

"Athrun Zala's spotted us. He's sure to warn them and they're going to be on the lookout now," Kira shrugged, gazing straight ahead at the inching traffic on the main road. "No point going after them."

"Zala saw us? Are you sure?"

"Positive. Besides, we already know where they're headed. With Seiran in charge, he's going to drag them all down to the theatre for a wild goose chase. They're not going to find anything there, so let's go."

The van didn't move. Auel said, "If we head back now, Athrun Zala could have us followed."

"He's not going to," said Kira, "The odds are against him. For now. He's just been stripped of his team. He's a lone ranger and what's he going to follow us in? His black convertible?" He shook his head and gestured forward with a hand. "Let's go."

* * *

As soon as Athrun got clear of the doors, he folded himself behind a pillar, ignoring the curious glances cast his way. He dug out his cell and dialed a number. Nicol picked up on the second ring. His voice resonated a little, like an echo. It was obvious that he was using his earpiece so that he could drive. "Yes, Chief?"

Athrun noted with some comfort that his team still acknowledged him as their superior, but he hastily pushed aside the feeling of triumph. "There might be a black van following you. Stay on the alert."

There was a pause, and Athrun waited as Nicol checked the mirrors.

"There's no sign of it, Chief."

Athrun glanced around the pillar. He could just catch a glimpse of the front bumper of the black van. The rest was obscured behind the office building across the street. It was still and unmoving. Two seconds later, it began to inch forward, then came to a stop.

"It's still here," He muttered into his phone. "I can see it. It's parked across the street. Hold on…"

The van had begun to move again, and this time it didn't stop. It inched forward a little more to the cross-junction, paused to allow a car to move ahead, then turned right and headed in the opposite direction.

"It's off your tail," Athrun said.

A pause again as Nicol double-checked the mirrors. "Are you sure it was shadowing us, Chief?"

"Yes," Athrun said, "I don't have time to explain. Just be careful."

"Yes, sir. You too."

He hung up and glanced back at the roads again. The van was gone. Athrun was certain that it had been trailing them. He glanced at his watch. _11:00 a.m. _They were approaching the end of the morning peak hour. Most office workers were already holed up in their offices and most delivery guys had finished their morning rounds. A black van like that, all run-down and faded, had to be some sort of delivery van. Besides, the Central Police Headquarters was set in the midst of the city, more specifically, downtown, where all the office buildings and skyscrapers were packed like sardines. No one here chose a van as their family vehicle. But most delivery vans had all sorts of labels and signs on them. This one was painted all black, with tinted windows. An unusual delivery van. And it had parked around the block, hidden behind the office building across the street. Double the intrigue.

The only explanation – it wasn't supposed to be there. It wasn't a delivery van making its morning round.

It was a surveillance van. Whoever it was inside, was keeping a close eye on the team. Whoever it was inside, had changed his mind to pursue the team. Whoever it was inside, was likely to be the one who had attacked the Clyne Mansion, killed an officer and injured Yzak. Whoever it was inside, was likely to be the one who had killed the woman alongside Officer Gregory Samson and Brian Hutson. Whoever it was inside, had Lacus in his hands.

And Athrun couldn't follow them. Because he didn't have a team, or a proper tracking vehicle.

He slammed his fist into the pillar and took off at a run. Shoving his way into a lift and ignoring the curses that were thrown his way, Athrun took it up to the sixteenth floor. He didn't wait for the doors to open completely before he charged through the deserted department and barged into his office. He fired up his computer so that he could run the plates of the van through the system. He left it running, then hurried back through the empty floor and boarded the lift up to the twentieth level in search of Miriallia Haw.

* * *

Lacus studied the woman crouched in the corner of the room closely and carefully.

She was still confident that they would let her go. Otherwise they wouldn't take the trouble to cover their faces, and _he_ would not have defended her. If she got out, she would need to remember as many details as she could. It would help Athrun's investigation.

So she stared at the woman intently, as much as she dared to.

And the woman endured her scrutiny.

Not that there was much to see anyway. The woman had a scarf that completely covered her hair. No possibility of telling what colour her tresses were, or whether her hair was worn short or long. Like her accomplices, she had a mask that covered the top half of her face, with tinted lenses that hid the colour of her eyes. A thin handkerchief hid the bottom half of her face from view. No way to tell if there were any distinguishing features on her.

She was lean. Not tall, but not short either. She wore a plain black turtleneck and trim black pants. No belt, no jewelry, no accessory of any kind. Nothing special.

Except the glass cylinder that she held in both hands.

Lacus stared at it. She had been confused at the start. The woman had crept into her room silently and settled in the corner, her knees pulled close to her chest as she cupped the glass cylinder in both hands. She didn't say a word, didn't even spare her a glance. Later, Lacus had realized that it was some kind of aquarium, a little glass tank, with a strand of emerald green seaweed and several tiny fishes. The woman just sat there and stared at the glass cylinder in her hands, with a sort of abstract curiosity in her eyes.

_She has her own issues_.

Lacus remembered what _he _had told her. _So this was it?_

But Lacus couldn't detect any animosity in the woman. She didn't look like she was going to attack or act in an aggressive manner. In fact, she hadn't even reacted to Lacus. It was like Lacus didn't exist.

Lacus started to talk. She didn't really know why. Maybe it was a 'female solidarity' kind of thing, like maybe she could get this woman to help her. So she talked, and she didn't know what else to talk about, except the topic that was weighing on her mind – Kira Yamato.

* * *

Athrun found Miriallia Haw in her lab, eyes glued to a microscope.

"I really need some good news," he told her, leaning his hip against a lap table and crossing his arms across his chest as he looked at her.

Miriallia didn't glance up from her work. "You're not the only one," she said. She moved the specimen slide of her microscope with a slight tap of her finger. "_I _need some good news too, especially after hearing how you were taken off Lacus' case."

"Bad news always travels fast," Athrun commented dryly.

Miriallia looked up from the microscope, just a tilt of the head to glance at him. "You know I'm not supposed to do this," she said, frowning, "Now that AC Ramius has taken you off the case, I can't provide you with any of the findings related to this case."

Athrun shrugged his shoulders. "So don't," he said. "Did Seiran ask you to trace the manufacturers of the chemical?"

The forensic scientist shook her head.

"Okay," he smiled, "So this isn't business-related. Treat this…" He gestured at the microscope with a hand. "-as research interest. What we're having-" He moved his hand back and forth between the two of them, "-is just a friendly, casual talk between colleagues. Sharing of research interest. Nothing directly related to the case."

"That's bullshit," Miriallia said.

Athrun shrugged his shoulders. "Help me out here, Miriallia," he said, this time his tone serious and sincere, "you know what's happening. You can guess what's going to happen. I need as much help as I can get."

Miriallia sighed and glanced away. She shook her head again, not in refusal, but in resignation. Athrun started to smile.

"Alright," she snapped, throwing her hands up in surrender. "I didn't say I wasn't going to help. But-" She pointed a finger at Athrun, who was grinning like a Cheshire cat. "-wipe that smile off your face, Athrun Zala. I promise I'll help, but you need to give me more time. And this is against the rules, so this has to stay off the books. Now, run off and chase down some other trail and leave me alone. I'll let you know if I find something."

"Yes, M'am," Athrun mocked a salute and hastened out of the lab. He dug out his cell again and scrolled through his contacts, looking for a specific someone who worked at the news agency.

* * *

Auel pulled up alongside the warehouse and killed the engine.

Kira slid out of the front passenger seat and waited till Sting had gotten off beside him. Then he patted the side of the van and said to Auel, "Trash it. And get us something a little more 'invisible'."

_Author's note: That's it! Next chapter should be up by next week! (Cross my fingers…) Meanwhile, don't forget to review x3!_


	39. 38

_Author's note: Right, here's the next chapter. So so so so sorry for the delay. Writer's block is really a pain. This is __definitely__ not one of the best chapters so far… I am ashamed of it…_

**Chapter 38:**

Luck was not on Athrun's side.

The results churned out by the system showed that the van's plates belonged to an old rental company that had gone bust three years ago and sold its cars to whoever was willing to buy them. The records were messy and disorganised and the last that had been known of the plates, was that they had been on an old run-down Cadillac on its way to the junkyard. Thus, strictly speaking, the plates should have been disposed alongside the Cadillac, crushed and buried somewhere amongst the twisted metal.

Not on a suspicious black van parked behind an office building.

But Athrun hadn't harboured high hopes to find anything useful in the system anyway. He just figured that perhaps he would get lucky, that a clue might just fall into his lap. But Lady Luck apparently had her eyes set on someone else.

_Dead-end. Time to move on. _

He shut down the system and turned his attention back to printing the endless list of names from the Missing Persons Database. The printer whirled to life and the paper began to spool. Athrun checked his watch. _11:35 a.m._ Less than half an hour before the afternoon news was due to come on.

* * *

Cagalli twirled her fork aimlessly through her noodles, her eyes fixed on the clock hanging on the wall across the ward. The second hand ticked on persistently. Once, twice, thrice. And then it was 12 p.m. Exactly thirty-one hours to go.

_How close was Athrun to finding Lacus?_

The tines of her fork got stuck in her noodles and she yanked it out, dripping strands of spaghetti across the edge of her plate. "Goddamn it," she cursed under her breath. She tossed her fork onto the tray and watched it clatter away. "What the hell's happening?"

She tried to push a hand through her blonde tresses but the bandage just got in her way. She tugged a little at the gauze and felt her head throb - a pulsing ache concentrating in the back of her head, exactly where she had received the hard blow. _No doubt a concussion,_ she thought to herself. But it didn't serve as sufficient distraction to divert her attention away from the memory of those dark amethyst eyes.

There was something in those eyes. Something strange, or special maybe. Something familiar. Something she was missing out on. She had a nagging feeling that she knew the face behind the mask.

He had looked at her. Really _looked_ at her. Not the kind of passing glance that you exchange with an oncoming passer-by on the street, but the kind of gaze that pauses and makes a double-take, as if to say _I know you_.

But did she really _know_ him? The implications of knowing would mean that this was an inside job, and Cagalli shuddered to think that they might have passed him by unwittingly, never knowing that they were at his mercy.

Yet there was equal probability that she was thinking too much and stretching the facts too far. After all, she had been hit in the head pretty hard. The doctor had said she was lucky – if Lacus' driver had came looking for them much later, she might have bled out and never woken up. So, maybe she had imagined it all. The amethyst eyes, the strange familiarity, the fainting, everything untrue, everything an illusion.

Cagalli cursed again and reached for the remote control set beside her bed. She switched on the television, which was a flat screen mounted into the wall across her ward and found the afternoon news coming on.

* * *

The lift doors grinded open and it took only a glance for Kira to realise that something wasn't quite right. The lights overhead were switched off and the shuttered iron grill windows blocked out the sunlight entirely, leaving behind a gloomy darkness broken only by the faded, eerie glows from the cluster of computer screens. He held the lift doors open and let Sting step out into the shadows. Sting paused on the threshold. "Stellar?" He called out, "We're back."

His voice ricocheted off the stained walls, echoing through the vast, empty area. There was no reply, only a pressing silence that brought with it a weighty solemnity.

"Sheesh, where the hell is she?" Sting muttered. "And what the hell is wrong with the lights?"

Kira didn't say anything. He fumbled his way through the darkness and found the electrical panel set deep in a wall. The switch was a huge plastic toggle, large and bulky, but still functioning well and he flipped it easily with his palm. The entire floor was awashed with the bright fluorescent light. Satisfied that the switch wasn't going to trip again, Kira turned to find Sting sitting ramrod straight in front of a computer. As if sensing his gaze, Sting glanced around and pointed a finger at the screen. Kira could see the logo he was pointing at from where was standing and he recognised it.

It was the logo of the local news broadcasting agency.

"Kira," Sting said, his voice quiet and cautious, "You need to look at this."

* * *

When Murrue Ramius barged headlong into his office, Athrun had just gotten off the phone with his pal at the news agency. He had known that AC Ramius wouldn't take kindly to the turn of events. He just didn't know that she would react so quickly. Murrue didn't say a word. She just glared at him with livid eyes as she snatched up the remote control on his desk and switched on the plasma TV screen in his office. It was set on the news channel and the afternoon headline news was already underway.

Athrun stared impassively at the headlines that screamed back at him from the plasma screen – 'Police Officers KIA to save unfortunate victim'.

The news anchor was a petite blonde with bright blue eyes and hair neatly pulled back into a bun. _"She's the best we've got," his guy at the news agency had told him. "She'll get it done right."_ And sure enough. She was speaking in a clipped tone, all serious and sincere, and she said, "We have more updates from the police with regards to the murder that occurred last week. According to the police, the victim was noted to have purple eyes and was found with an identification card on him bearing the name Kira Hibiki. Police are appealing for help in identifying the victim and urge members of the public to come forward with any relevant information. Now, on to the latest news we have from the sporting arena-"

The television screen went blank.

_Not bad, _Athrun thought. His guy at the news agency had got it all right. Word for word.

"You better have a good explanation for this, Detective Zala."

Athrun glanced up into Murrue's infuriated gaze, "I don't know what sort of explanation you want from me." He shrugged in her direction. "This is perfect."

"Perfect?" Murrue exploded, "Damn it! You promised to stay out of the case, Athrun!"

He shrugged again. "And I kept my promise. I don't see what the problem is. Your concern is that if information leaks out, the reputation of the police force will be at stake, that people will lose confidence in the police force. But that's not the case here." He gestured at screen with a hand. "Police officers killed in action to save an unfortunate victim," he read aloud, "that should affirm the good reputation of the police force, which you and the upper management are so concerned about. Secondly, I did stay out of the case as you requested. _You_ saw to it that I'm no longer in charge. So I'm just a third-party, an individual exercising civic responsibility by sharing information with the media. I'm not involved in the investigation."

"Don't give me that bullshit," Murrue snarled. Her eyes were flashing dangerously but he met her furious gaze unflinchingly. "You're giving false information to the media, Athrun. Do you have any idea what the implications are?"

"Yes," Athrun's expression hardened. "Someone may very well turn up and identify this guy. That way, at least we'll have some kind of hold on him. That beats sitting around, waiting for them to strike."

"How do you know someone's going to turn up? This name may well be a pseudonym," Murrue brandished the remote control wildly in his face.

"Well, I don't know," Athrun replied coldly, "It's just a gamble we're going to have to take then, won't we?"

"You're _crazy_, Athrun," Murrue shook her head, "You're fucking crazy."

"You want to talk about crazy?" He snapped, "Let's talk about the detective you put in charge of Lacus' case."

Murrue slammed the remote control onto the desk. "I think I've explained myself, detective. This was a decision made by the Commissioner himself," She crossed her arms in front of her chest and glared at him. "You deliberately disobeyed my orders and this was exactly what I was afraid would happen. You're letting the case get to your head."

She shook her head, expression rueful. "You need a time-out. You're suspended off all duties as of now. I need you to surrender your badge and your gun, and I don't want to see your face in the Police Headquarters until the case is closed, Athrun."

* * *

"What the fuck is going on?" said Sting.

Kira said nothing.

"How did that asshole get his hands on your name?" Sting said again.

Kira said nothing. He was working out the consequences of the turn of events in his head. Athrun Zala had made his move, and it was a bold move. Kira was pretty sure that the Police Headquarters had no part in this. He knew how bureaucracy worked, and he knew that the police and the media had a love-hate relationship. Police officers were cautious of reporters. They were probably trained to say 'no comment' in a deadpan face whenever confronted with a slew of journalists. Yet they depended on the media for publicity, for dissemination of information. And the media was like a bloodthirsty leech that fed off the police.

A love-hate relationship.

So Kira was certain that issuing false information to the media had to be taboo to the unyielding, rigid old farts that ran the force. A scheme like that smelled of desperation and anger.

Which was probably what Athrun Zala was feeling. Thus, logically speaking, this had to be Athrun Zala's plan. And it was definitely off the records.

But Kira saw more to it. Athrun Zala wasn't just desperate. He was offering up a challenge. He was breaking the rules now. _A game of cat and mouse_, that was what he had said to the detective and Athrun Zala was responding to him in kind. The tables were turning. Athrun Zala was on the offensive.

But Athrun Zala wasn't the threat.

It was Rau Le Creuset.

Because he had committed a mistake by revealing his name to Lacus Clyne, who must have in turn surrendered it to Athrun Zala.

Just _one_ mistake. And honestly, a salvageable mistake. Athrun Zala was expecting someone to turn up with something useful. The detective had manipulated the truth and turned him into the victim, so he was expecting a family member or a friend to show up, all flustered and worried. But Kira didn't have family, didn't have friends. No one was going to show up.

A salvageable mistake. Because Athrun Zala didn't have any idea what kind of a screwed-up person he was.

But then again, it was a mistake and Rau didn't like mistakes. Not even if it was just _one _mistake. Not even if it was a salvageable mistake.

"How the hell did he get your name?" Sting asked again.

Before Kira could reply, he was interrupted by a soft voice that said, "He's got it wrong."

Kira and Sting spun around to see Stellar standing behind them, head bowed and eyes gazing up at them through her eyelashes.

"Jesus," Sting let out a breath, "You scared the hell out of us."

Stellar didn't comment on that. She just went on to say, "He's got the name wrong. He's not looking for Kira Hibiki." She shook her head, her shoulder-length blonde tresses brushing against her shoulders. "He's looking for Kira Yamato."

_Author's note: Oh bother! This chapter really isn't very good. But I hope it's at least readable. I was suffering from severe writer's block which is still lingering… Ah well, like I always say, don't forget to review, review, review. (even if it's all bad, I still hope to hear from you!)_


	40. 39

_Author's note: Here's the next chappie, along with a thousand apologies for the long delay. I was studying classic Greek literature for school and I conclude that Greek literature doesn't go well with crime fiction and thrillers. I couldn't pull myself out of all that Greek tragedy and mythology stuff to get into the right mood and tone to write this chapter. Sheesh… at least I managed to steal a little time to write. Anyways, read on and I hope you enjoy it (although I think the standard of this chapter might have dropped a little because of how long I haven't been writing… hmmm…)_

**Chapter 39:**

When you work for a man who is obsessed with wealth and power, and the ability to take anything he wanted including the lives of those around him, you learnt to deal with the strange and sometimes 'impossible'. Once, Kira had hunted down a man foolish enough to cross Rau. Desperate to cover his tracks, the man had strangled his children and wife with his own bare hands. With fake papers, he left the country and sought plastic surgery. He had a new face and a new body and he found a new home at the edge of a cliff, on a remote island inhabited only by savage tribesmen and surrounded on all sides by the vast ocean. Kira had simply thrown him off the edge. Mission accomplished.

In his line of work, Kira had seen lots of people adopting new identities. Some fool had made his new home in a submarine anchored in an underground water cavern. Apparently there were advantages to that, for Kira didn't have much to clean up thereafter – the explosion had only caused a small, insignificant ripple in the ocean. No alarm caused.

Strange.

Ridiculous, maybe.

Then again, he was imbued with physical abilities that no common man had. Who was he to talk about the strange and impossible?

But whatever Stellar was saying, was stretching things a little too far. And from the quirk of Sting's eyebrow, he didn't believe what he was hearing too.

"So you're saying Kira really isn't Kira?" His green-haired companion frowned.

"It all makes sense. Can't you see?" Stellar said, "The 'Kira Yamato' that Lacus knows – he disappeared fifteen years ago. You told me-" She turned to Kira, magenta eyes large and imploring, as if hoping he could see her point and agree with her. "You told me you were initiated into the facility fifteen years ago. That tallies, right? And Sting told us you were asking about our memories, what we could remember _before_ the facility but there's nothing. Absolutely nothing. It's as if we never lived before entering the facility. Something's not right there. And you know something about Cagalli Yamato too. You had some sort of attack when you saw her. A panic attack? Some kind of memory rekindled? Whatever, you reacted when you saw her, Kira. Auel stripped the security cameras when we left the theatre, but we reviewed the footage. You collapsed after turning around to look at Cagalli Yamato. You _must_ have some connection to her. Lacus Clyne told me that Kira Yamato was Cagalli's twin. That says something, right? You were taken away fifteen years ago to the facility. Those fucking scientists must have done something to you, to us, so that we can't remember anything about the past. So you're not Kira Hibiki, you're Kira Yamato."

Kira said nothing in reply.

"It all makes sense," she repeated pleadingly.

"Well, that's the biggest load of crap I've ever heard." Sting snapped, "That Clyne woman's obviously up to something. She's messing with your head, Stellar."

"No, it makes sense," Stellar said again. Her jaw was set tight, her small frame radiating tension and stubborn persistence. "Think about it: we don't know where we came from, but we can't have simply fallen out of the sky. We must have had a past of some kind, a past that we've forgotten – I don't know how or why – but it's a past that we've been trained not to think about."

"And the reason is obvious, isn't it?" Sting jeered, "Because this discussion is just ridiculous. What? You've become soft now, Stellar?" He bared his teeth and hissed. "Under usual circumstances, you'll have cut off her tongue before she began spouting her lies. Or is it that you suffered another one of your side-effects?"

"They're not lies!" Stellar shouted.

"Don't be naïve." Sting's eyebrows were furrowed with annoyance, and Stellar's eyes were brimming with frustrated tears.

"Enough," Kira said. He faced Stellar, mouth set in a grim line. "Forget whatever Lacus Clyne told you. We never had this conversation."

Stellar turned to him with an astounded expression. "But it's the truth, Kira. I know it sounds ridiculous and exaggerated, but there's something suspicious going on here and we need to-"

"We _don't_ need to do anything about it, Stellar," Kira interrupted smoothly.

"Kira-"

"No." His amethyst eyes hardened. Truth was, he understood Stellar's words and recognized the implications and the possibilities behind them, but Kira also knew that they were treading dangerous grounds. He wanted to know more, needed to know more. This was the first time he had received any explanation, no matter how improbable, for his recurring dreams, for his strange collapse, for this unknown familiarity that he felt whenever he set his eyes on Lacus Clyne. But trawling through these dirty little secrets would have their consequences.

Devastating consequences that would get them all killed.

And he didn't need the rest of his team dying because of some secret of his.

Kira glanced up at Stellar and stared her squarely in the eye. "I want you to let it go, Stellar. Forget whatever transpired. That's an order."

* * *

"_You're fucking insane! I can't believe you did that!"_

Athrun pulled his cell away from his ear as Shinn's shriek nearly deafened him. "Yeah, well, join the club," he said dryly into the phone, "I've already got that lecture from AD Ramius. Do you have anything new to add?"

There was a short burst of static and scuffling in the background, then Nicol came on. _"Chief, what are you going to do now?"_

Athrun shrugged even though there was no one to see him do it. He chucked the last file of freshly printed documents into the cardboard box resting on his desk before settling back down into his chair. "I've been put on temporary leave. I've gotta get out of the office by one p.m."

"_You're still going to keep investigating, aren't you?"_

Athrun didn't reply.

"_You know what AD Ramius is going to do if she finds out. I think she's serious this time."_

Athrun ignored the comment and asked instead, "What are you doing?"

Nicol gave an exasperated sigh. "_What do you think we're doing? We're running through this whole place with a fine-toothed comb, looking for non-existent fingerprints."_

There was a yell in the background which sounded like Dearka making one of his usual snide remarks.

"What?" Athrun said.

"_Wait a sec."_ A little static as Nicol covered the phone receiver with a hand, then it cleared up. _"Dearka's making a grouse that fingerprinting isn't in our job scope and the place has already been fingerprinted,"_ he said.

"Where's Seiran?"

"_Good question,"_ Nicol replied, _"Moron Seiran – that's Shinn's nickname for him – apparently went off to look for some potential eye-witnesses. Luna says he probably drove off to some café so that he could sit around and sip some coffee."_

"Do you understand now why I need to continue investigating?"

The other side of the phone was silent for a spell. _"Okay,"_ Nicol finally said, _"but you know what AD Ramius is going to be like when she finds out, so just… stay off the books."_

Getting up from his chair, Athrun trapped the cell between his ear and shoulder so that he could close the box with both hands. "I don't need telling twice," He said, "I'll be under the radar these few days, so I need your help."

"_I know. If anyone comes calling with news about this 'Kira Hibiki' guy, we'll hook you up to him before Moron Seiran finds out."_

"Thanks," Athrun gave a tight smile. They exchanged quick goodbyes and Athrun pocketed his cell. He slung his jacket over his forearm and hefted the cardboard box. It was heavy, stacked full of papers covered in details of missing persons from more than ten years ago. He lifted it with both hands and felt curiously incomplete. His shoulder holster was empty and he missed feeling the warm butt of his gun against his body. It had hindered his movements a little at the start of his career, but he had grown used to the weight and feel of the Glock beneath his arm. It felt secure, felt right, and without it, he felt almost naked. Vulnerable. Like being tacked to a bulls-eye for everyone to shoot at.

But Athrun also knew it meant something else. It was a symbol of responsibility. A very heavy symbol. And perhaps without it, he could feel something that he hadn't felt in a long time – a little freedom.

* * *

The 'more invisible' mode of transport that Auel managed to get his hands on was a second-hand dark blue sedan with plates taken off a vehicle in the junkyard. It looked a little old, but not so damaged that it couldn't blend in with the vehicles coursing along the streets of the business district. Auel had gotten it washed down and cleaned up and it could pass off perfectly as a family car. Unsuspicious and untraceable. The perfect cover.

"So, what do you think?" Auel grinned as he got out of the driver's seat. Kira noticed that the vinyl seats even had cushions on them, just like a family car. Even better. He smiled and patted the hood of their new car. "Not bad," he smiled. "The van?"

Auel's lips tugged into a wide grin. "It's buried somewhere in the junkyard, all crushed into a giant cube. I saw it done myself."

"Good."

Auel reached into the car and killed the engine, removing the key from the engine igniter. As he straightened, he glanced curiously over the top of the sedan at Stellar and Sting, who were both leaning against the entrance of the warehouse. Sting had both hands shoved deep into his pockets in what appeared to be a casual demeanour, but the set of his shoulders betrayed the tension in him. Stellar was a little less concerned about hiding her emotions, and the way in which she crossed both arms across her chest displayed her obvious frustration.

"Did I miss something?" Auel quirked an eyebrow at Kira.

His leader said nothing.

Auel shrugged his shoulders in resignation. "Okay," he let out a breath slowly, "right… so what do we do next?"

"Nothing," Kira said, "We just wait."

_Author's note: So, what do you think? It's a little slow, I know. I'm hoping that the action will speed up a little in the upcoming chapters. I just wanted to explain why Stellar knew about Kira, and yes, I know it's getting a little lame, but I wanted to show the conflict rising in the team. What do you think? Did it achieve its effect? Review, review, review and let me know! And I really have to thank everyone who has been reading so far and giving me all these helpful reviews. You have no idea how much these reviews mean to me!_


	41. 40

_Author's note: Rightie! Here's the next chappie! I'm glad to say that I think this one is better than the previous one! And let me just show a little appreciation to all my reviewers so far!_

_To moi: so glad to hear from you every chapter! Yeah, I know, the revelation section was horrid (to read and to write). I haven't quite figured it out yet… but I'm hoping this chapter brings the quality a little higher?_

_To Seiba Artoria: thanks for the comfort in Chapter 38. I really tot it was bad, although now I think 39 is worst… But really glad to hear from you and I hope you enjoy this chapter as well. _

_To cheeseries: hello! Glad to know you enjoyed the chapter and you're looking forward to more!_

_To AAA: I'm so sorry for the delay each time! But I hope the following chapters will be worthwhile :D And Rau's reaction should be coming up in the later chapters, I think…_

_To littlemsstrawberry: Now, I never thought about Kira stalking Cagalli… and this could really be a good idea, since it sort of matches Kira's dark, brooding, secretive personality. I'm thinking about it, maybe there's a way to put that in… Oh, and this chapter has a little more asucaga, but it's one of the rare times I'm writing about them, so let me know what you think!_

_To hardcoreGSfan: Lol, glad you liked the "Moron Seiran" title. I couldn't think of any others because the word 'moron' kept coming back to me. But am glad that you're still looking fwd to the rest fo the story, even tho chapter 39 wasn't the best yet. Hope to hear from you again!_

_To BlackFlame004: Hahaha, Seiran really is a loser. I tried to make him as silly as I could, and I really do agree that he ought to be dumped in the desert. Maybe Shinn and the rest of the team could ditch him, I'm working on that… :) _

_Now, read on guys, and I hope you enjoy!_

Athrun made it to the lift unharrassed, and took it down to the basement car park. He gave a polite nod to the security behind the desk and opened the glass door with a shove of his shoulder. His black convertible was parked some distance away, boxed in on one side by a glossy blue sedan and a compact violet Porsche on the other.

He balanced the cardboard box between his left hip and the side of his car, fishing for the keys in his trouser pocket with a hand. With the cardboard box neatly jammed in the back seat, Athrun got in the front, revved up the engine and pulled out of the lot.

Most of the action took place above ground, where the police cruisers were kept in the open-space car park bordering the building. So the basement car park was quiet in the middle of the day.

He drove up the ramp at the exit of the car park and emerged into the sunlight. Traffic on the streets was dwindling slightly as the lunch hour slipped away. His black convertible eased onto the road and joined the other moving vehicles, passing before the front of the Central Police Headquarters. The cab before him stopped abruptly and Athrun slid his car to a halt behind it. Through the rear window, Athrun could see the back of the passenger's head. It was a woman, and he watched as she leaned forward to speak to the driver, then flung open the passenger door and got out.

And Athrun recognized her immediately.

The cab took off and Athrun slid his car into its place. The woman was already ascending the steps to the heavy glass doors of the building. He wound down the window and leaned across the passenger seat so that he could yell out. "Cagalli? What are you doing here?"

Cagalli Yamato faced round to look at him. The intense expression on her face didn't ease as she turned on her heels and backtracked down to the street again. She slid uninvited into the passenger seat and shut the door, then turned to him with a grim look. The white bandage wrapped around her head had been dislodged, her blonde hair frizzy and tousled. Donned in a frumpy oversized turtleneck sweater and loose-fitting crumpled jeans, Cagalli looked a dreadful sight indeed, and her pale pallor did nothing to assuage the sight.

"You should be in the hospital, Cagalli," Athrun began, "What in the world are you doing here?"

She ignored his question, bright hazel eyes narrowing dangerously. "I want to know why you didn't tell me about Kira."

* * *

The coffee was good. It was hot and strong. Just the way he needed it to be. Athrun lifted the mug and took a long sip. The bitter aftertaste lingered upon his tongue and lips.

"Talk."

He swiveled around.

Cagalli was standing in the doorway of his kitchen and his emerald eyes swept a glance over her. Her blond hair was damp from the shower and the dressing on her forehead was limp and wet. She had changed into the new clothes he had bought her on the way up to the house. A perfect fit.

"Talk," she said again.

Athrun nodded towards the bag of garments she had tossed onto his countertop – the awful turtleneck and jeans she had been wearing when he first saw her outside the Central Police Headquarters. "Where did you find those to wear?"

Cagalli gave a shrug. "I 'borrowed' them from a nurse. They were left behind by a patient."

He gestured again at her weeping bandage with his mug. "You shouldn't have washed your hair. I'm quite sure you're supposed to keep the wound dry."

A nonchalant shrug again. "I hate the smell of hospitals. I had to get it out of my hair." Then she shook her head and stared hard at him. "Stop brushing me away, Athrun Zala. I want you to talk and explain yourself."

Athrun gave a sigh as he replaced the mug on the counter. _She sure was persistent. _If he hadn't threatened to drive her back to the hospital, she would have hauled him out of the car and demanded an explanation right outside the Police Headquarters. She had only kept her mouth shut and let him stop by the department store, take her back to his home (since she absolutely refused to return to her own home), simply because she wanted answers. And now that she had done everything he asked, it was his turn to reciprocate.

"Alright," he said, stepping around her and heading in the direction of his bedroom. "But you need to change the dressing, so we'll talk in here."

He could feel her eyes burning holes into his back as he led her into his bedroom and gestured for her to take a seat on the bed. "Talk. Now," she demanded as she sank down on the edge of his mattress, glaring at him crossing the room into the adjoining bathroom.

"What do you want to know?" Athrun asked. He retrieved the first-aid kit from behind the mirror and stepped back into the room.

"I saw the news when I was in the hospital. The man you're looking for – his name is Kira," Cagalli said. There was an accusatory tone in her voice, as if she was blaming him for failing to tell her that fact.

Athrun knew where the conversation was heading, and honestly, he was hoping that it wouldn't go there. The name 'Kira' was sensitive to all of them – Lacus, Cagalli, himself – because after all, they had all grown up together. But it was a touchier topic for Cagalli, and he was praying that he could save her the agony of finding out.

"It's not the Kira we know," he said gently. He set the first-aid kit on the bed beside Cagalli and sank down on one knee so that he could access the soaked bandage.

"How do you know it's not him?" The same accusatory tone, coupled with an intense stare.

Athrun reached behind Cagalli's head. He spoke as he unraveled the dressing. "There are lots of other people with the name 'Kira'," he said, his voice soft as he tried to reason with her, "Besides his name is 'Kira Hibiki', not 'Kira Yamato'."

_The last part, he didn't really believe it himself…_

"He's got purple eyes," Cagalli argued, "I saw them myself, Athrun. I told you I recognized those eyes."

The bandage came away and revealed the gash on her brow. It was weeping slightly, but otherwise looked uninfected. Drowsing a cotton ball with antiseptic, he began to gently clean her wound. "But it doesn't make sense, Cagalli," he reasoned. "How is it that Kira disappeared so long ago, then turns up all of a sudden as a criminal, kidnaps Lacus and knocks you unconscious? There are too many question marks, too many uncertainties. We need to know more before we can conclude."

"But it's definitely not a coincidence," blurted out Cagalli, "You're the one who always says coincidences don't happen so frequently. Besides, this is too much of a coincidence."

"It's just not plausible, Cagalli," Athrun replied. He tossed the stained cotton ball aside and unrolled a clean bandage. "I admit I've thought of such a possibility, but how can you expect me to believe something so absurd?" He wrapped the bandage around her head, ensuring that the wound was sufficiently covered and protected, his fingers gentle and soothing against her brow.

"I'm not asking you to believe it, Athrun," Cagalli said softly. A hand reached up and took his wrist, stilling his hands. Athrun glanced down and met her eyes for the first time since she had gotten into his car. It was the tears glistening in her hazel brown eyes that froze him, for it had been years since he had seen her lose her stoic front. The cool ice-princess façade had slipped in some years after Kira's disappearance. Perhaps it was a protection of some sort, and Cagalli only lowered her barriers around friends. Still, there was always a thin sheet of ice that she had in place, as if etched permanently into her by loss and trauma. But, for the first time in years, Athrun watched as that sheet of ice melted away and the Cagalli he had known from many years ago began to show herself again.

"You don't have to believe it, Athrun," she repeated softly, helplessly, "Just don't discredit it. As long as it isn't proven, there's still a chance, and all we need is one chance."

* * *

It was by chance that Meyrin stumbled upon the conversation at the front desk.

She had been walked through the massive glass doors in the entrance of the Central Police Headquarters, balancing a cardboard tray with four Styrofoam cups in one hand and weighed down by a box of doughnuts in the other.

She attempted a glance at her watch.

5:40p.m.

Despite her attempts to hurry, she had still taken half an hour. Thirty minutes wasted, while the rest of the team stayed holed up in the conference room, doing what was _really _important. _Damn… _She knew what her chief would say to that. Athrun always said a lot could happen in thirty minutes – a murder could take place in five, the body disposed off in fifteen and the evidence eradicated in the remaining ten. And as law enforcement, you could get a team set up in fifteen and on the scene in ten, with five minutes to spare. You would catch him in the act of removing the evidence. No way could he weasel out of it. A hundred percent guilty. Case closed, wrapped tight and sealed.

That would be a thirty minutes better spent, rather than standing in line at the café.

And it was all Moron Seiran's fault.

Meyrin had been reluctant to leave the conference room. Athrun had never requested her to run his errands or get his coffee in the midst of a conference. He had never caused her to miss team meetings and Meyrin wasn't planning on starting, even though a meeting headed by Yuna Roma Seiran had to be fruitless. But Moron Seiran had shown his displeasure by picking up the phone and ringing the HR department.

She got out of the office before the call could get through.

_Damn Seiran! He was a downright asshole. _

She had jogged to the nearby café as fast as she could in her heels, then back to HQ again as fast as she could without spilling the hot coffee down the front of her satin blouse. A uniformed officer opened the glass doors for her, a sympathetic smile on his face. She returned it with a resigned grin, nodding her thanks, before crossing the lobby in wide strides, her kitten heels clicking against the marble flooring. The lobby was as busy as usual - clerks and secretaries carrying bundles of files, police officers marching past with their eyes on their clipboards, detectives in suits rushing purposefully from one meeting to another. People had gotten used to finding their way around without glancing up or bumping into one another. Meyrin became simply one of the many bodies hurrying to and fro across the lobby.

It was when she breezed past the front desk that she heard something to make her break her stride.

There was a woman at the front desk, leaning over the counter top and speaking anxiously to the officer on duty. Amidst the hum-drum, Meyrin caught only snippets of their conversation but what made her stop, was the mention of the name Kira Hibiki.

_No way… _

She spun around to face the front desk and retraced her steps quickly, narrowly missing a pair of cops who had their heads buried deep in conversation.

"Excuse me, pardon me," she said as she came up behind the woman at the front desk. The woman turned. Now that Meyrin was closer, she caught a better glimpse of the woman. Her features were drawn tight with worry, eyebrows furrowed. Soft grey eyes were watching her with curiosity and a little apprehension, as if she felt that the interruption would hinder what she had come to get done.

Meyrin forced an easy smile. "Excuse me," she said again, "are you looking for someone? Maybe I can help. Is this in response to the news broadcasted this afternoon?"

The woman hesitated. She tugged a lock of scarlet red hair behind her ear, then nodded uneasily.

"Kira Hibiki?"

The woman nodded again, this time with more certainty, and some anxiety.

"Okay," Meyrin said, already making up her mind. Priority #1 was to get this woman away from HQ. "Let me take you to the detective-in-charge," she urged.

The woman glanced at the officer behind the desk. "I was talking to this officer over here. He told me a Detective Seiran is in charge. Do you know where he is? Can you really arrange for us to meet? It's urgent."

Meyrin shot a hard glare at the officer behind the desk. He was on his feet, left hand poised with the phone receiver and right index finger hovering over the dial pad, a look of bemusement on his face.

"Yeah well," Meyrin smiled, "I'm his personal secretary. I can get you to him much faster than the average desk jockey." She strode up to the front desk, dumped both the cardboard tray and the box of doughnuts on the table, then leaned over the counter, took the phone receiver out of the officer's hand and replaced it in its cradle. Turning to face the woman, Meyrin beckoned towards her. "This way," she said, heading for the heavy glass doors of the Central Police Headquarters.

The woman hung back, confused. "The lifts are here-," she started, but Meyrin interrupted her smoothly and reassuringly. "Chief isn't in his office. He's out sniffing down a clue. I'll take you to him. This way." Convinced, the stranger fell in behind her and both women headed for the exit.

"Since when did-"

Meyrin raised a quick finger to signal for the woman to wait for her, then quickly returned to the front desk. The officer on duty was staring at her in puzzlement, and Meyrin fixed a reassuring grin on her face. "You know what you should do," she smiled sweetly, sliding both the box of doughnuts and the tray of coffee towards the officer. "It's obvious which side you should be standing on." She winked.

A grin broke out on the officer's face as he laid a possessive hand on the box. "Right," he laughed, "this woman never entered HQ. I never saw her and I never heard her mention any name. My lips are sealed."

Meyrin's smile widened.

"So," the officer drawled out. "Send my regards to Detective Zala when you see him later, and of course, I'll save the chocolate doughnut for you," He grinned and raised a hand which Meyrin gladly slapped with her own. _A __high-five__, meaning 'secret safe with me'._

_Author's note: So… what do you think? I know, it may not be the best, but at least, I hope it's better than the previous? Whew, finally, we got a little more Asucaga action, but this is one of the few rare times that I'm writing a relationship between Athrun and Cagalli, so I'm a little hesitant about the dynamics. And I wanted to break down Cagalli's barriers here, just to show a little bit more of her, since she's been pretty much absent since the beginning of the story. And I always felt the Cagalli in GS and GSD was like an ice-princess, but she has this vulnerable side to her whenever she's facing Athrun… Hmm… I think I need to reflect a little bit more on this Asucaga relationship… Anyways, do drop me a review and let me know what you think. It'll be extra helpful at this stage because I need all the help I can get if I want to get this Asucaga thing going… So review, review, review!_


	42. 41

**Chapter 41**

Athrun made his way into the kitchen and poured himself another cup of the strong brew from the machine. With the small of his back against the counter, he took a deep whiff and the strong scent of caffeine assaulted his senses. It smelt good. And the caffeine set his mind thinking.

Athrun remembered the first time he had set eyes on Kira Yamato. It was at the entrance of Copernicus Elementary School. He was but a boy himself, wide-eyed and curious, his small hand clasped in Siegel Clyne's larger one. He had been quiet, shy perhaps, and Lacus had been the one chattering and tugging at him. Lacus had been a sweet, adorable little girl with huge cerulean eyes and a wonderful voice. Athrun adored her from the start of their new siblinghood. She had been in Copernicus Elementary for a year; Athrun was new. Siegel, though busy, had taken an hour off to see to it that he was eased into his new school.

Lacus had been eager, if not over-zealous, in demonstrating the layout of the school. She dragged Siegel and Athrun all around, pointing out the classrooms, the garden, the play area, the library… Siegel grasped her little hand, attempting, in vain, to slow her down.

Until she began to hop from one foot to another and waved hysterically at a couple with two kids in tow.

"Kira! Cagalli!" She had shrieked, straining against Siegel's hold.

The couple had stopped and turned when their children came bounding over. A blonde girl and her brunette brother. They skidded to a halt and the girls began to chatter, their words quick and excited. The boy was quiet though, and Athrun had studied him with more than a little curiosity. There was a gentle smile on the boy's face as he listened to his sister's conversation. Then, as though sensing Athrun's gaze on him, he turned to meet it with innocent amethyst eyes. The boy's smile had widened a little but an expression of shyness had come over him.

The couple had strolled up to Siegel and exchanged friendly greetings. The woman had deep blue hair and when she glanced down at him, Athrun had felt a deep longing for the woman who reminded him of his mother.

Her voice was gentle when she spoke, "So this is your new charge, Siegel?"

Siegel had glanced down at him and squeezed his hand reassuringly. "Yes," he smiled.

She bent, hands on her knees so that she was at eye-level with him. "What's your name?"

"Athrun," he had said, trying to put on a little smile so that he looked a little more likeable.

"And how old are you?"

"Four."

"Oh," the woman had said, "Kira and Cagalli are both four too." She took her son's little hand and led him forward. "Say hello, Kira."

The little boy gave a tentative smile. "Hello," he said obediently, showing small pearly white teeth.

"Hello," responded Athrun.

Later, Athrun had found out that he was in the same class as Kira. Kira was nice. He was gentle, sincere and quiet. Sometimes too quiet. Athrun quickly learned that there were people in class who took advantage of Kira's gentle demeanour. He stood up for Kira in cases like that, and Kira had returned the favour by being his 'listener'. He was the first person whom Athrun shared his past. Only Kira, other than Siegel and Lacus, knew his insecurities and his fears. Though young, Kira had been comfort, and they had remained best friends for more than three years.

Up until news of Kira's disappearance came.

Haruma and Caridad Yamato had been distraught. Someone had turned up at the police with Cagalli unconscious. Kira was nowhere to be found. The witness said he had seen someone making off with a boy but he couldn't be sure. No one called for a ransom, no body was found floating in the river. It was as if Kira had completely disappeared off the surface of the earth.

Lacus hadn't understood it then, when she saw Siegel's grim look and the Yamatos' tear-stained faces. She thought Kira had left temporarily and that he would come back soon. So did Cagalli. They thought it was impossible for anyone to leave for good. But Athrun knew better. His mother had left him, then his father, then everyone else he had known. He knew people could leave and never come back, and all you had left was a tattered photograph.

And fifteen years passed by, without any news, without any hopes or promises. Kira became nothing but an unspoken source of agony.

_Fifteen years was a very long time…_

Yet, it seemed as if things were changing. Fifteen years without a clue was like being stranded in a desert, the claws of thirst raking the parched throat raw. When a clue was suddenly tossed into the mix, it was like being offered a glass of water. But fifteen years of thirst, coupled with illusions, had cast doubts.

_How could any of it make sense? How could a seven year-old boy simply disappear without a trace, then turn up fifteen years later? As a criminal, a murderer and a kidnapper, with a single-minded obsession to get his hands on the Clyne Corporation's new serum. What did the chemical trace, and genetic modification, as absurd as it sounded, and all that scientific jargon have to do with him? _

_If he really was Kira, did that mean that the guy he had spoken to on the phone, the man who had laid down the terms and conditions meticulously, was in fact the best friend he hadn't seen in years? _

_What was this? A game set up by some perverse psychopath?_

Athrun took a long sip of his coffee.

_Then Lacus would be in the hands of a psychopath. Or she could very well be in the hands of a friend they had all lost. What the hell was going on?_

_Lacus… _

He prayed that she would be alright. Siegel would be crushed if anything happened to her. Athrun would never forgive himself if he let her come to harm. He had to get her out, and to do that, he would have to play their game and _win_. No way out. Winning was the only option.

And Athrun prided himself as a man who had won every game thus far.

Only, the stakes were much higher this time and he couldn't afford to lose.

He glanced down at the mug of coffee he held in his hand and suddenly felt repulsion towards it. Lacus had always insisted that excessive caffeine wasn't a good thing and unfortunately, Athrun was a self-professed caffeine-addict. He credited his addiction to the need for late hours that came with the job. Lacus hadn't bought his idea. But now, Athrun would give anything to hear her nag at him again.

Feeling ill, he headed for the sink and poured the remaining contents of his mug into it, watching as the brown liquid swirled and gurgled into the drain, light wisps of steam rising. He turned on the faucet and rinsed the sink out, then satisfied, he wandered back into the living room and paused in the doorway, shoulder against the doorframe as he gazed into the lounge.

Documents were strewn all over the carpeted floor and the glass table in the middle of the lounge was hidden from view by a toppling heap of files.

Cagalli was curled up in the couch asleep, her feet tucked under her and her head pillowed by a thick sheaf of papers. Light had snuck into the room through the glass window and cast a pillar of radiance across her upper torso. Her shoulder-length blonde hair, splayed out over the armrest, shimmered as it caught the light of the setting sun. Athrun glanced over at the only window in his living room. It faced out onto the main street and he could see the diminishing sunlight. One half of the street was now bathed in the reddish-gold hues of the setting sun, and the other half was shrouded in shadows – like darkness pursuing the light.

The pulsing red digits on the clock across the room informed him that it was already 6:12 p.m.

Athrun approached with feet silent on the carpeted floor, carefully treading his way amongst the strewn papers. Cagalli didn't stir even when he eased the sheet of paper she had clutched out of her hand. He glanced down at it and realized that Cagalli had prowled through the Missing Persons file starting in from the back. She had made it all through the 'Z' and was already half way through the 'Y'. No doubt she was heading straight for the name _Yamato, Kira_.

He laid the sheet of paper on the table, then headed for the bedroom, where he found a rolled-up blanket at the back of his wardrobe. With it tucked under his arm, he retraced his footsteps back into the lounge. Cagalli hadn't moved an inch. Must be the painkillers, he thought as he covered her lightly so that the cotton sheet was pulled up to her shoulders. Gently, he explored the bandage on her forehead, making sure it was snug before carefully smoothing the strands of blonde hair that had fallen across her face.

The insistent ringing of his cell phone caused him to draw back in a hurry. He fumbled the device out of his trouser pocket and silenced it quickly by pressing the 'receive' button. "Hello?" he muttered urgently with a hand cupped over his mouth to muffle the conversation.

Lunamaria's voice came through the line. "Chief?" She said.

Even as Athrun hurried out of the living room, careful not to trip over the piles of papers, he could detect the undercurrent of barely contained excitement. She didn't wait for him to reply.

"We've got a woman here asking about Kira Hibiki. Can you meet her now?"

"Yes," Athrun said without hesitation, already heading for his bedroom. "Where?"

"We've got her in the café two streets away. Dearka will meet you outside the entrance of HQ and arrange for you guys to meet."

"Right. And what about Seiran?"

"Nicol, Shinn and I are in the office. We'll keep him occupied."

"Okay. Thanks, I'll be there in five."

Athrun hung up just as he stepped through the doorway of his bedroom. He had been wearing a T-shirt and a pair of loose slacks, and now he threw them off in exchange for a button-down silk shirt and dress pants. He reached for the shoulder holster resting atop the dresser out of pure habit, then realised that he didn't need it.

He left the room, tossing his clothes into the laundry basket on the way out. Passing through the hallway, he glanced into the lounge and found Cagalli still asleep. He left her a note to inform her of his whereabouts before grabbing his car keys and jamming his feet into his shoes at the same time. Then he ran down the driveway, slid into the car, shoved the gear into drive and tore down the rapidly darkening street, feeling for the first time in days, more alive than ever.

* * *

The café was filled with the early-dinner crowd.

Dearka pushed his way through the queue at the entrance, signaling to the waitress that he was just looking for friends. Athrun followed him, eyes scanning the crowd.

"She's over there."

Dearka pointed towards the back of the café. Athrun followed his gaze and saw a woman with scarlet hair sitting in a booth alone. She was fidgeting with the clasp of her purse and didn't notice their approach until both men had stepped up to her table. She glanced up at them with curiosity, and a little sheepishness. Athrun could see why – she looked completely out of place. The red-headed woman was wearing a simple pale pink cotton dress with a shallow v-neck, a collar and sleeves. It ended an inch above her knees. The front looked a little frumpy, but it was evident that she had made an effort to smooth out the creases in her lap. There was a stain on her skirt. Probably steak sauce, or BBQ sauce. Maybe chilli or ketchup. It looked faded and washed out, like she had tried to scrub it out in the washroom to no avail.

_A waitress_, Athrun decided, _but not a waitress of this café_. She didn't blend in with the crowd because she didn't look like an office worker. Neither was she wearing the clean-cut white blouses and black skirts that the waitresses in the café were wearing. She was more like a waitress in a diner away from the suburbs, like a greasy spoon.

A very busy waitress who had caught a glimpse of the news, tore off her apron, tried to rinse the stain out of her skirt, gave up and hastened over to the police station.

Lots of fear, lots of paranoia, lots of anxiety.

"Miss Allster?" He said politely.

She nodded, head bobbing earnestly. "Yes." A tentative smile. "You're Detective Seiran?"

"No, I'm sorry," Athrun fixed a reassuring smile on his face. "I'm not. I'm Athrun Zala, Chief of the Special Unit. There was some miscommunication. This case falls under the Special Unit's charge, not Detective Seiran's team," he lied smoothly, at the same time marveling at how the lie could slip through his teeth so easily. Behind him, Dearka backed his tall tale with a firm nod and flashed his ID. Athrun set an air of professionalism around him, standing tall and poised with a quiet politeness in his voice, aware that his lack of ID could expose him right away.

Fortunately, the woman appeared not to notice that she had only seen one ID. "Oh, hello," the Allster woman smiled. Nervousness came over her as she began fidgeting with the clasp of her purse again. "I saw the news. Is Kira alright? Can I see him?"

"You mean Kira Hibiki?" Athrun asked.

She nodded again.

He gestured at the empty seat across from her. "Do you mind if we sit?"

"No, of course not. Please do."

Athrun slid across the bench so that his shoulder was pressed up against the window and waited for Dearka to sit down beside him, before saying, "Kira's alright. The doctors wanted to keep him under observation, that's all. He's also a key witness in this case so the police have put him under the witness protection program. So I hope you understand why we can't arrange for you to meet him."

The woman smiled. This time, it was a smile of relief. "He really is alright?"

"Yes."

"That's good. I was so worried when I saw the news. He was gone for so many days I thought something must have happened to him."

Athrun nodded reassuringly. "I understand. You mentioned he was gone for many days? Could you tell me what happened?"

Flay Allster shrugged her shoulders and began to pick at the hem of her dress. "I think it was a while ago, maybe two weeks or more when I asked Kira if he could come over to my house for a tasting session. My boyfriend and I own a restaurant, you see. But he didn't turn up and I haven't seen him since then. He used to come over to the restaurant for breakfast. Not every day, but whenever he could make it. But two weeks has been the longest time. When I went over to his apartment, he wasn't there either. I thought something had happened to him."

"He didn't call you, or inform you about his whereabouts?"

"No, he didn't. But then again, Kira and I don't talk over the phone."

"Why not?"

She hesitated, as though searching for a word to best describe her situation. "We… it's difficult to explain. Kira's a little secretive, a little anti-social. But he's a nice guy. We talk when he comes over for breakfast, and sometimes lunch and dinner, but we don't talk on the phone. In fact, I'm not even sure if he has a cellphone."

Dearka gave a snort. "No cellphone in the 21st century?"

Athrun silenced him with a hard glare, then turned back to the woman again. "Do you know anything about his family? Friends? His job?"

"No, not really," she shook her head. "I don't think he's got any family left. He's never mentioned them." She paused, head cocked to the side, "I don't know much about his career either. He's told me that he deals with 'dangerous' stuff, and he sometimes turns up bruised and beaten. I figured maybe he works in a security firm, or maybe he's an agent of some sort and he can't disclose any of the details to outsiders." Then she cast a look that was half-suspicious and half-amused. "He's not a policeman undercover, is he?"

Athrun exchanged a subtle glance with Dearka. But to Flay, he gave a reserved smile.

The woman caught on quickly. Nodding, she returned his smile and said, "I understand. Witness Protection Program, right? This must be classified information."

"You mentioned his apartment just now?" Athrun asked, changing the subject quickly. "Can you give me the address?"

"Sure, it's just a five-minute walk away from the restaurant." Flay rattled off an address which Dearka scribbled down diligently on a napkin from the table. He folded it neatly into quarters before handing it to Athrun, who pocketed it.

"Can you also describe this Kira we're talking about?" Dearka asked.

The woman eyed him strangely. "Why? You've seen him, haven't you?"

The blonde man paused, suddenly aware that the tall tale was falling apart, but Athrun interrupted smoothly. "This is for admin purposes. We always ask our witnesses and respondents to describe the person, whether it's a victim or a criminal. It's for the records."

"Oh, right," she nodded earnestly, "I understand. Kira's, well, good-looking. Brown hair, lean, a little taller than me-" She raised a hand and held it palm down an inch or two above her head. "-and he's got very striking purple eyes."

Athrun sank into the backrest. _All that description. It was the first concrete description he had heard of so far. The rest had been bits and pieces. Lacus had provided the name, Cagalli had provided the eye colour. And this woman, Flay Allster, she had put everything together. Brown hair, purple eyes. It matched the Kira he had known fifteen years ago. Was this a coincidence, or was there much more to it?_

He glanced up again to find the woman watching him curiously. "Kira," she began, then bit her lip, fingers finding the clasp of her purse again, "he's not in trouble, is he?"

"Trouble?"

"I mean, he hasn't broken the law or something, has he? It's just that all your questions are a little… strange."

Athrun fixed a smile on his face, forcing it to look as calm and encouraging as he could. "We wanted to clarify some things. Don't worry, Kira is fine."

"I see," she lapsed into a thoughtful silence, then glanced quickly at the watch she had strapped over her wrist. "Oh, it's 7:30 already. I've gotta run. It's almost closing time and I've already left the restaurant for a couple of hours. Do you need anything else, Detective?"

"No, it's fine," Athrun said as both men stood. He shook hands with Flay, assured her that he would call if Kira could meet her, insisted he would pay for her drink, then watched as the scarlet-haired waitress hastened out of the café.

"So, what are you going to do now, Chief?" Dearka asked. Athrun shrugged, eyes fixed on the outside of the window, watching as Flay Allster flagged down a cab and got in. The cab drove off and disappeared out of sight. Athrun retrieved the napkin from his pocket and scanned the scribbled address on it. "Guess I'll wait for dark," he said. Then he glanced up and met Dearka's eyes. He brandished the napkin in his direction. "Then I'll go and take a look at Mr. Hibiki's apartment."

_Author's note: There's the next chappie… a little boring, because of all the emotional stuff, inner thoughts etc. but still… just wanted to set some history and background for the relationship between Athrun and Kira and why he might be skeptical and doubtful about the clues. I always felt Athrun was a little, little bit cynic in GSD, always believing what Durandal says, but always doubting anything to do with Kira. Hmm… now I'm making him sound foolish even though he's not… Oh well, just don't forget to review, review, review! Wonder what Athrun will be up to next?..._


	43. 42

_Author's note: Here's the next chapter! Personally, I quite enjoyed writing this, but of course, I hope you enjoy reading it! Once again, thank you very much to one and all who commented! Do leave your reviews again after reading this one!_

**Chapter 42**

12:00 a.m.

Midnight.

Kira took a long swig from his bottle, and settled back into his chair to think.

He was facing a computer screen and he could make out the ruffled, dishevelled pale blue hair behind it – Auel, asleep on the table, with his head in his folded arms. Beside him, Stellar was tucked in a chair, her feet bracing against the edge of the seat in what seemed like a precarious balancing act. But she appeared at ease, eyes closed, breathing calm and even. Sting was on the floor, huddled in a far corner and hidden in the shadows, away from the harsh fluosrescent lighting.

Kira was the only one awake.

And he was okay with it. Someone needed to keep a lookout. He had opted for the first shift so that the rest of the team could rest. They were tired, tensions were running high, nerves were frayed. No one had ever said kidnapping was an easy job.

Of course, the other reason he had volunteered, was that he didn't think he could sleep.

There was too much going on in his head. Too much. It was like being thrust into the mdist of a crowd, with strangers streaming past all around. All talking, all conversing. All speaking in a foreign language. A hard shove on the right, then another push on the left. Stumbling, tripping, turning around, ready to snarl at the next faceless stranger that bumps into you, then realising that you couldn't speak at all. That no voice was coming out of your mouth. That you were the only one who couldn't speak in this huge, unknown world. The only one.

_For fuck's sake, shut up._

He pressed the bottle of water he held in his hand against his forehead so that the coolness of the water could soothe his feverish and thrumming head. Sitting up in his chair, Kira paused for a moment, hesitating, then reached for the mouse. He pulled up the web, and typed into the search box the name "Cagalli Yamato".

He got off onto a couple of false starts – Cagalli Yamato the banker, Cagalli Yamato the property agent, Cagalli Yamato the student – before eventually coming upon an article. It was an interview. Quickly, he scanned through it, amethyst eyes shifting as he took in the information. Most of the details, he had already known. These had been part of the preparatory work he and the team had undertaken before kidnapping Lacus. Age 22, blonde hair, amber eyes, 5'4", lean, athletic, single, studied the art of directing in an overseas university, born to Haruma Yamato and Caridad Yamato.

Nothing about a brother. Or a twin, considering that Kira and her were of the same age.

He browsed through the links but his search remained futile. Most of what he found were interviews, articles, film critiques and play reviews. Nothing special. Nothing that stood out or screamed at him in the face. Cagalli Yamato didn't appear to have a thing with the press. But then again, Kira figured that those who worked in the back-scenes tended to dislike the media. Directors, camera crew, light managers, whatever odd jobs these people had, they preferred working from the shadows.

Kira smiled. _It was ironic. They were just like him_.

Well, killing was both a science and an art too. _The art of assassination_, he liked how that sounded. He had studied. Just like any other normal student. Only, his classroom had been a cell, four cemented walls, no windows, harsh fluorescent lights and a polished whiteboard. The 'teacher' wore a lab coat, and there were burly men who stood guard at the door. A room with more than twenty other 'classmates', all cuffed, their necks encased in chains that were bolted to the ground, just in case one of the students succumbed to 'boredom' and decided to play 'truant'. It was in that 'classroom' that he had learnt all about the human body. That all human beings had eight vital organs – the larynx, spine, lungs, liver, jugular vein, collarbone, kidney and heart, that slicing the jugular vein didn't cause blood to spurt, that it takes less than five minutes for a person to pass out from a lack of oxygen, but that it actually takes more than seven for the heart to really stop.

Of course, nothing beat practical fieldwork.

The aesthetics, however, came from designing the perfect crime scene. How to clean up after a murder, or how to leave an intentional clue to lead the cops off on a wild goose chase. How to lay the body in a misleading fashion. How to fight without upsetting the furniture, to kill without making a mess.

It was an _art_. Like theatre and cinema. And he was the director. Just like Cagalli Yamato. Only, his stage was a lot bloodier.

_Fifteen years ago…_ Stellar had said. Perhaps it was too long. After all, the world was changing fast now. Every day, new information took over the old, pushing it aside ruthlessly. There was no more place for the old and ancient. No one was concerned anymore about the brother of a theatre director who went missing fifteen years ago.

That is, if she _really_ had a brother.

Kira pondered for a moment, then decided to try another search. Maybe someone who didn't work so much in the shadows. He keyed in the name "Lacus Clyne", and found himself staring at more than a thousand hits. On every page, he found stunning photographs and posters of the pink-haired actress, and information that he already knew. But nothing else. The paparazzi were more interested in trivial stuff like her love life and her favourite food and what not.

No mention of a "Kira Yamato".

This time, he keyed in the name itself. And turned up empty-handed. Kira Yamato the student (again), Kira Yamato the musician, Kira Yamato the general, Kira Yamato the professor, even Kira Yamato the plumber (who promised that all clients who hired his services this week, were guaranteed a discount). No "Kira Yamato" the missing boy, or "Kira Yamato" the brother of Cagalli Yamato.

_What shit was he getting himself into?_

Kira closed the web browser with a swift click of his mouse and leaned back into his chair, ignoring the soft squeaks and protests of the springs. The rest of his team slept on.

_Why was he so intent on finding out who "Kira Yamato" was? Or his relationship with Cagalli Yamato? Strictly speaking, it didn't concern him. It didn't matter when he was brought to the facility, why he was in it, who sent him there, what happened before the facility. None of it had mattered before, and none of it should matter now. He could simply walk away from all of it. Make sure he got the serum, sent Lacus Clyne back into her father's arms, and everything would go back to normal. He would go back to his living hell because it was where he belonged, it was where he thrived. He didn't need to know what his identity was. He already had one – Kira Hibiki, Rau Le Creuset's best assassin. What more was there? What else could he expect?_

_Salvation? _

Kira nearly laughed out loud. _There was no saving, no help. There was no way out. No one had ever left Rau, not unless he or she was dead. The world was a living hell in itself. Did it then matter if he was Kira Yamato or Kira Hibiki?_

Kira glanced towards another lit computer screen. This one had a grey image on it, footage from the hidden camera that showed Lacus Clyne curled up in a corner, legs tucked in, one arm pillowing her head and the other curled around her as she held the jacket close. _Goddamn it._ He was on a mission, a task given by Rau, and for any mission to be successful, you had to have no distractions. That was a rule of the game. Yet, here he was, meddling with Cagalli Yamato and her brother Kira Yamato, whom he wasn't even sure existed.

Then again, how could he possibly explain his own recurring dreams?

_Fuck it. It didn't matter._ Kira took a deep breath and tried to slow his breathing. _It didn't matter. One step at a time. His priority was to get his hands on the serum. The rest, he could deal with later._

Rummaging under a heap of coiled wires, he found Sting's laptop. It took a while to get the device going and when he had eventually gotten into the system, he found what he was looking for – the three encrypted folders. It was easy accessing the files because he knew the passwords. Inside each folder, Kira found separate documents, each labelled under a different name – Cagalli Yamato, Lacus Clyne and Athrun Zala.

Before each mission, Rau's coordinators had advance teams sent out to scope the situation. Their findings and reports were usually sent back in encrypted files. Lacus Clyne's file, according to the details on the screen, had the largest memory and held the most information, because she was the target. Kira had run through it all before the start of the mission and he was certain that there had been no mention of a "Kira Yamato".

Neither did Cagalli Yamato's file. Cagalli's information had taken up the smallest memory. The advance teams hadn't collected much information about her. She wasn't the primary target; it hadn't been likely that she would be implicated. The information provided had been sufficient enough just to make it clear that the blonde woman was close to Lacus Clyne and therefore could appear on the scene. In which case, Kira's team had been given free rein to cut her down if she got in the way. Which they did.

The last file was that of Athrun Zala's. Kira opened it with a tap of his keyboard and small condensed words began to fill the screen. The first half of the report contained information on his team. The Special Unit. Created to deal with emergency situations and tough cases that the average policeman or officer couldn't solve. Because of that, the team was outfitted with the cream of the crop of each department, and of course, it was headed by the best of the best.

Line after line of words ran across the page, and on the right, a series of photographs formed a vertical line, each with the face of a member of Athrun's team. Kira skipped those because he had heard Sting read out the details. He scrolled downwards with his mouse until he came upon the picture of the blue-haired detective.

_Time to find out more about his nemesis. _

The advance team had delved into Athrun Zala's history in an exhaustive manner. His details ran on for pages and pages. First came a list of his accolades, which Kira merely browsed through because he didn't expect anything less of Athrun Zala. Indeed, the detective had amassed an outstanding list of awards – in his time at the police academy, he had been the 1st in marksmanship for four consecutive years, 1st in hand-to-hand combat for three and he was the youngest student to top his graduating class; as a member of the police force, he had attained five medals, was plucked right out of the academy into the Special Unit and was promoted to its head in just a short span of four years.

_The best of the best_.

There were commendation letters and certificates and for a second, Kira marvelled at the proficiency of the advance teams. Then came the background checks on his family history.

Athrun Zala had been born to then Head Commissioner Patrick Zala and his wife Lenore Zala. _The apple didn't fall far from the tree_, thought Kira, _since both father and son had found themselves in the police force._ But Kira changed his mind when he read on to the next paragraph. Patrick Zala was rumoured to be a crude and harsh superior, who was hard on criminals and subordinates alike. Eighteen years ago, when his son was merely four, Patrick Zala had been accused of corruption and bribery. Attempts to arrest him led to a dramatic, full-fledged car chase that spanned across the city, resulting in an accident that saw the death of his wife Lenore Zala, who had been in the passenger seat of the car he was driving. Patrick Zala, however, escaped, distraught with the death of his wife, until the police eventually cornered him in a kindergarten, in which young Athrun was enrolled. To escape, Patrick Zala had used his own son as a hostage and fled to the airport, but his disguise was exposed. It was then and there that Patrick Zala had disclosed the last bits of his plan. He had had explosives planted in four commercial buildings scattered across the city. The news had sent the police force into frenzy and as the Assistant Head Commissioner and senior detectives scrambled to organise their manpower, a foolish junior detective had fired a shot. A shot that narrowly missed Athrun Zala and caught his father in the heart. Even in his dying moments, Patrick Zala never did reveal the locations of the explosives. He died at 6:58 p.m., and that night, the city rang out with the blasts and pained cries of those who lost their loved ones.

A nightmare that the city would never forget.

A nightmare that a little boy would never forget.

Besides the information, there was a snapshot of Patrick Zala and his wife, and a little bundle of wrapped cloths that Lenore Zala cradled in her arms. From the deep blue hair peeking out of the edge of the blanket, Kira figured that it was Athrun Zala.

The rest of the report had newspaper articles covering the catastrophe, as a city struggled to recover from one man's brutal acts. There was no mention of the little orphan in those papers. But the advance team sealed that loophole with copies of the adoption papers – Siegel Clyne, a friend of Patrick Zala's and one of the world's richest men, had adopted Athrun Zala. It was he who supported the orphan and gave him an education, a home.

And Kira knew what all that meant about Athrun Zala. The man was _different_. Kira had sensed it the moment he set eyes on the blue-haired detective leaning against the front doors of the Clyne Mansion, his bright emerald eyes sweeping the crowd. This man wasn't like any other, and it was because of one simple reason – he had learnt what it felt like to lose. To lose his parents, to lose his home, to lose his childhood, to lose everything. And that was what drove him to fight, and to win. Because he didn't want to lose again.

He wasn't all that different from Kira.

Kira fought to win too. Because he had killed enough to know what it felt like to lose a game of life and death. With Lacus Clyne in danger, Kira knew Athrun would throw in all his cards. _Winning _was the only option.

_Author's note: There! Finally, I've got Athrun and Kira's brief backgrounds laid out into the open! So, what do you think? Remember to review, review, review!_


	44. 43

_Author's note: Ohhhhh, I'm soooooo happy to see that this fanfic has hit 100 reviews! Thank you so much, everyone! Initially, I intended to celebrate with a special update, like a sort of interlude or prequel or something like that. But I'm still working on it, and since there's much more flexibility involved, I was wondering if anyone has any requests or ideas that might inspire me or that I could incorporate into this special update…? Ahh well, but before that happens, here's the next chappie, and I hope you enjoy it, even though it is a little short! So read on!_

**Chapter 43**

Athrun found the greasy spoon first. It stood alone in a vast carpark, like a solid rectangular block of cement with small glass windows cut into its walls. The neon signboard wasn't lit and the lights in the windows were off. The carpark was empty and silent. He took his hand out of his jacket pocket and lifted it to a nearby street lamp so that he could catch a glimpse of his watch. The minute hand ticked and shifted and fell into place behind the hour hand. 12:00 a.m.

Midnight.

A still, frigid coldness was setting in and Athrun shoved his hand back into his pocket to keep warm. Then he dipped his chin behind his upturned collar, turned on his heel and headed down the narrow one-way street, away from the diner.

The neighbourhood he was in was a distance away from the main street, hidden amidst a maze of side lanes and small roads. The suburbs – a residential area at the brink of the city, so clustered with housing that on the map, the street was an almost unnoticeable inch-long line, blended into a confusing web of streaks and tiny little cubes. It was a dodgy kind of neighbourhood, unlike his own street, but it wasn't a slum either. Not the kind of place where serial killers hung out, but a pickpocket here and there wouldn't have been a shock.

Athrun trudged on. Alone. Walking along the narrow sidewalk as he counted the houses. To his right was the gravel-covered street itself and an aluminium fence on the other side, topped by spikes and a park, lit up in a dim orange glow, stretching beyond it. The row of apartments ran along on his left. They were narrow single-storey houses, set close together and raised up off the street by two or three stone steps. Not really classy and modern-looking apartments, but they were at least neat and clean. Which said some things about the people in the neighbourhood. _The lower-middle class perhaps,_ deduced Athrun, _not rich, but not all that poor either_. The kind of people who earned enough to see themselves as civilised individuals, who wished they could live better and were paranoid that the street they were living on wasn't all that safe. They were the ones who avoided trouble if they could. So all the windows were shuttered and dark.

All was quiet, like a dead town. No one about at this time of night, or in this sort of weather. And it suited Athrun just fine. He didn't need witnesses for what he was about to do.

The house he was looking for was the fifth one in the row. It stood three steps above the sidewalk. Its red brick façade was stained chocolate with age, its door a black rectangle set deep into the front wall. A rusted plate stuck to right pillar had the number '5' imprinted on it and it was just above a tiny gold knob which served as the door bell. There were two windows, one on each side of the door, brimmed by cream-coloured frames. No lines of light between or under the blades of the grey blinds that were pulled across the glass.

Athrun glanced at it from the corner of his eye and kept walking, all the way past it, past the sixth house and then the seventh, hands deep in the pockets of his jacket, backpack slung behind him, shoulders hunched against the cold. Like an average passer-by, intent on making it home and out of the wind.

Still no one about.

He made it down to the end of the street, then stealthily, he rounded the last house and came up behind it. There was no back door. Only another street with another row of similar houses, stuck back-to-back to the ones he had just passed, so similar that it was as if they were fixed out of the same mould. He came back round to the front and peered down the narrow little street – all quiet – before retracing his footsteps. At the fifth, Athrun stopped again and glanced both ways, emerald eyes sweeping the neighbourhood quickly but warily, watching for any sudden movements or the glints of any hidden cameras. Deeming it safe, he left the sidewalk and ascended the little stone steps until he came before the ominous black door. He reached around into his backpack, slid out a pair of leather gloves and slipped them over his hands, then produced a black cap from his backpack and put it on, pulling it low. He took some time to wrap bags over his shoes. And lastly, retrieved a lock-picking kit from the backpack's external pouch.

There were two possibilities. One, there would be an alarm system, and the minute he inserted the pick into the lock, a shrill shriek would awaken the neighbours and send them spilling out onto the street. Second, there would be no security system whatsoever. Athrun hesitated for a second, then decided that the latter sounded more logical. Whoever the adversary was, (whether it was Kira or not, Athrun hadn't quite decided), he was a cautious man who thought thrice before he did anything. Which criminal would risk having an alarm system installed in his apartment so that it would draw the attention of the police when it was triggered?

It was an assumption, but Athrun figured that it was worth the risk. _This was the only clue he had. _It was all or none. He took a deep breath, held it for a couple of seconds before releasing it, and stuck the tension wrench into the lock. Carefully, he slipped the pick into the gaping hole and jangled it gently into place. No shrill shriek of an alarm. All quiet. _Perfect_.

Lock-picking wasn't all that difficult. Athrun had learnt it back in the police academy. Not that police officers had to learn how to pick locks, because if you ever needed to search a house, you needed to apply for a search warrant. But it had been a useful lesson learning how burglars worked their charms. Athrun had tried his hand at it several times and this would simply be another practice. _Only, this time, speed was of essence._

Keeping a firm pressure on the tension wrench, he located the first pin with his pick and fussed at it until he heard the faint click. It sounded like a gunshot in the otherwise dead-silent night and Athrun paused for a second, glancing behind him for any signs of disturbance. Nothing. The air was still, no sign of a wind, the cold remained impervious. He turned back to his work and worried at the remaining pins, till he had gotten all of them clicked into place. Gently, he eased the pick out of the gap and tilted the tension wrench clockwise. The latch bolt retreated and with a slight shove, the door swung inwards into darkness.

Athrun hesitated on the porch for several seconds, just to see if there would be any interruptions to his intrusive activities. There were none, so he slipped in through the door quietly and closed it behind him. The blinds were drawn down across the windows and light from the street struggled to get through the narrow gaps, falling onto the ground in broken lines. Still, the darkness swallowed him within its depths and a heavy silence weighed down upon him. With his back against the door, Athrun waited for his eyes to adjust to the lack of light, before taking the first step into what appeared to be Kira Hibiki's apartment.

Fishing for the torch in his backpack, he flicked the switch and the cast beam sliced through the darkness to form an orange oval on the wooden floorboards. He swept the beam round the house, from left to right, quickly, before switching it off. Just enough to get his bearings in a foreign environment, but not enough to raise the suspicion of a random pedestrian who might walk past the house.

The apartment was a simple, clear-cut rectangle. An area divided into three separate compartments – bedroom, living room, kitchen. Ahead of him appeared to be the living room. The bulky, looming shape of the couch was stashed away in the corner, the shadow of a low coffee-table stood before it. And that was all there was in the living room. Nothing else – no television, no telephone, no display units, no rugs covering the parquet flooring. A simple, if not bleak, layout.

To his right, he caught a glimpse of waist-high oak cupboards, and figured that it was the kitchen. To his left, was a doorway that led into yet another room. In a plain apartment like that, it was most likely the bedroom. And Athrun chose to head towards it first.

To save the batteries, he kept his torch off and felt his way through the dark, his gloved palms brushing against the walls, his plastic-clad shoes making soft, rustling sounds as he took each careful step. He made it to the doorway and paused, back against the wall, peering into the room, careful to duck if anything came his way.

Nothing. No one.

Despite the gloom, Athrun could make out the shape of the bed and the almost flat surface upon it, which indicated that there was no one hidden amongst the covers. The bed was flanked on each side by low bedside drawers, one with a lamp atop it. The closet stood against the wall across from the bed.

Athrun inched into the bedroom, using the wall as a shield behind him. Several feet away, there was a gaping entrance, the door half open. Pressing his fingers to it, he took in a breath and gave it a little push, just a foot or more, and found himself facing an empty bathroom covered in ceramic tiles.

And then he heard it.

The quiet click of the front door closing.

He froze, his ears straining to hear signs of the intruder. For a second or two, there was no sound. Just the weighty silence that pressed on. Then the first shuffle that came from somewhere in the living room. Athrun sank down onto his haunches and hiked up his right trouser leg. He had a hunter's knife strapped to his calf and he pulled it from its make-shift scabbard. Grasping the knife firmly, blade forward, he moved stealthily towards the doorway of the bedroom. He could hear the movements of the intruder, sounding more distant as he moved away towards the kitchen.

Athrun waited. The wall against his back felt cool because of the sweat slicking his shirt. The mental clock in his mind ticked on persistently. The intruder remained silent for a second more, before retracing his steps back into the living room. There was a pause, as if the intruder was pondering his next move. Then the sound of footsteps heading in the direction of the bedroom. A soft, tentative tread that implied hesitance and uncertainty. Or caution and wariness. Either way, he who struck first would have the advantage, and Athrun intended to be the first. He altered his hold on his knife, reversing the blade so that he could attack with a downward stab.

The intruder kept coming.

Three more steps.

Then two.

Then one.

And Athrun lunged.

_Author's note: Ahhhh! Cliff hanger! Don't hate me for this! I just figured that if I kept writing, it would be difficult to end this chapter and also, because I'm not quite there yet. Hope you understand… So, what do you think? Good? Bad? Boring? Exciting? Thrilling? Who do you think the intruder is? Kira? Don't forget to review review review! :D_


	45. 44

_Author's note: Hey there, back with the next chappie. I know, I know, this chapter has taken quite some time to write, and with the previous cliffhanger, everyone's hating me to the core right now. I'm real glad for the Internet now, because at least we're not face-to-face, or I might just dissolve under all your intense death glares… Anyways, I should stop holding you back from reading, before you guys track me down… Read on and enjoy!_

**Chapter 44:**

Athrun didn't know what stopped him.

It could have been the muffled gasp that slipped from the intruder's lips. It could have been the smallness of the intruder's frame. Or the suppleness and softness of the body beneath his own. It could have been the familiar streak of blonde hair. Or the panicked amber eyes that gleamed in the dark. Either way, Athrun was utterly grateful and glad that he had frozen in the midst of his assault. Especially when he found himself facing Cagalli Yamato, his blade mere inches away from her throat.

The force of the collision had driven Cagalli backwards. She was on her back, winded, eyes wide and wild. Her limbs were trapped underneath Athrun's, who had his right knee jammed unceremoniously into her stomach.

Athrun lifted off the pressure in a hurry, falling back onto his heels, but he kept his fingers clamped tight over her mouth, for fear that she might scream and bring any unwanted neighbours running.

It took him a while to get his breath back. His veins were still pumped full of adrenalin; sweat matted his hair and slicked down his face, making his eyes sting and water. _Just a second mor__e. A second more__, and he __would__ have committed the biggest mistake of his life. _He made a conscious effort to calm his heart, which was thudding painfully and incessantly against his ribs. He could almost hear the blood rushing in his ears. The shock, surprise, alarm, whatever it was, was taking ages to ebb away and he felt so consumed by it that he might shatter from within. Finally, he sucked in a breath and released it slowly, a soft, almost inaudible, hiss through his teeth. "Goddamn it!" He choked out, feeling as if his voice had fled his throat. "What in the goddamn world are you doing here?"

It seemed as if Cagalli too was dazed from the fall, because it took her a couple of seconds to respond with a weak toss of the head. Her amber eyes narrowed and shifted, almost glaring, as she glanced down at the fingers wrapped around her mouth. _The old Cagalli_. It made a smile crack across Athrun's lips despite the circumstances.

He drew back, withdrawing his left hand with him, and with his right, reversed the blade so that the cold steel lay snug against his palm, its blade tip against his wrist. "How in the goddamn world did you know about this place?" He repeated in a harsh whisper as he extended a hand towards her. Cagalli grasped it gratefully and hauled herself into an upright position.

The darkness made it difficult for Athrun to see her facial expressions, but he could hear her rough breathing and when she began to speak, he could pick out the wince in her voice. "I called Dearka."

"Right," he scoffed. _He should have guessed it: Dearka was a blabbermouth._ "But you shouldn't have come," Athrun continued, "I could have killed you. Goddamn it… I still can't believe… That was just plain foolish." His voice faded away as he tried to come to terms with the fact that Cagalli was still seated across from him, alive and well, just seconds after he had almost stabbed her with his own hands.

"Well, you started this whole mess. I told you we were going to deal with this _together_," Cagalli snapped out, emphasizing the last word with a hiss, "You _promised_ – damn it. But you just turn up in Kira's apartment all by yourself. What part of 'together' do you not understand?"

"I told you, we don't know yet if this is the Kira we know-"

"Whatever," his blonde companion interrupted impatiently, "Kira Yamato, Kira Hibiki, doesn't matter for now. You _promised_ you would let me help you, at least for Lacus' sake."

Athrun could sense the discussion coming to an end, and he knew he wasn't likely to emerge victorious. He was torn between bundling Cagalli out of the house, and continuing his exploration of the apartment. In the end, it was his glance at his watch that sealed his decision. He had less than nineteen hours to work out a plan. _Time was running out. _"Fine," he retorted, "let's keep going then. Or we're going to make an easy catch for the next intruder – you and me, here in the middle of the doorway, like sitting ducks." He scrambled to his feet and reached out a hand to pull Cagalli after him. "Ssh, this way."

They retraced their footsteps into the bedroom again, Athrun leading the way and Cagalli trailing after him, hanging on to the sleeve of his jacket like a child. The bedroom remained dark and empty as they stepped lightly through the gloom. "Be careful," whispered Athrun when he noticed that Cagalli had worn no gloves. He tugged off his left glove and handed it to her over his shoulder. "Don't leave any fingerprints behind."

As she pulled the leather glove over her left hand, they exchanged a nod and parted ways. Athrun headed towards the closet, which was a plain wooden cupboard, a heavy, solid cuboid with two doors that opened outwards. With his right thumb and index finger, Athrun cautiously teased the left one open. The interior of the closet was simple. A single steel bar ran across the top quarter, from which hung several neatly pressed shirts and trimly folded trousers. The bottom quarter was occupied by a set of drawers, which upon opening, revealed towels and underwear. Nothing out of the ordinary.

Athrun shut the closet and turned around. Cagalli too was done prying through the bedside drawers single-handedly. In the gloom, Athrun caught her shake of the head. "Nothing special in here," she said quietly, "just an alarm clock."

They approached the bed and Athrun swept his torch beam over the bedsheets. The sheets had been pressed and starched, so tightly tucked in, that the bed resembled those in hotels. The quilt was neatly squared away at the foot of the bed and the pillow nicely propped against the cushioned headboard. The light from his torch did not pick up any stray hairs or debris. Athrun straightened and shook his head at Cagalli, whose hunched shoulders indicated that disappointment was setting in.

They moved on to the adjoining bathroom and found a similar plainness in the layout. The glass-surrounded shower cubicle held only the basic necessities – shampoo and soap. The glass shelf above the ceramic sink held only a glass with a toothbrush and a half-used tube of toothpaste. "I've got a pair of scissors in my backpack," Athrun said to Cagalli. "Can you get it for me?" There was no reply, but he felt his backpack dip as she rummaged through the bag, then tipped the scissors at him, handle first. Easing the toothbrush out of its glass vessel with his gloved hand, Athrun produced a clean handkerchief from his trouser pocket. He snipped the bristles of the toothbrush and carefully wrapped the remnants in the cloth. Cagalli watched curiously as he pocketed the folded package and replaced the toothbrush.

Athrun checked his watch. _12:46 a.m. _He had planned to give himself an hour, and he only had fourteen minutes left. He led the way out of the bathroom and headed for the entrance of the bedroom. At the door, he paused and cast another glance around the bedroom. The room was so bare that they couldn't have missed anything. With Cagalli by his side, he wandered back into the sitting room.

Working fast, they combed the sitting room but turned up empty-handed again. The couch was cream leather. It didn't look new, but not old either. When Athrun placed his gloved palm in the middle of the seat and pressed, it sank and rose smoothly, the sponge underneath the upholstery still functioning well. The seams remained in satisfying condition. And there was nothing to mar it neat, clean surface. No hairs, threads or traces. The coffee table, a marbled furniture, stood empty.

The kitchen didn't yield any results either. The waist-high oak cabinets were largely empty, stocked only with some packets of biscuits; the fridge contained several bottles of water; the stove was clean and grease-free.

Athrun checked his watch again. _12:57 a.m. _

He found Cagalli peering into a wastepaper basket in the living room. She shook her head at his approach to indicate that there was nothing to be found. In response, Athrun nodded towards the door. They slipped out of the apartment quietly, Athrun taking care to wipe Cagalli's fingerprints off the doorknob. They paused on the porch for a second or two and gazed down both ends of the empty street, then trotted down the steps, took a right turn and walked on silently into the night, pacing together side by side.

When they reached the end of the street and the diner came into view, the time on Athrun's watch was 1:00 a.m.

_Right on time._

_Author's note: There it is. It's not really one of the best chapters, but it should be reasonable, I hope? And to all readers, of course, thank you always for the support!_

_To Ffionn: Aww, you guessed it. I was trying to do some paralleling with the 'downward stab'. It was after all, the first time Athrun and Cagalli met each other in the anime! So what do you think? Was it too obvious?_

_To animedoshia: You guessed it right! Aww, I was hoping it would be a secret. Kira and Lacus should be coming up soon, perhaps in the next few chapters. I'm looking forward to it too!_

_To hardcoreGSfan: Heheheh, I am looking forward to the meeting between Athrun and Kira too but not here though. I think it'll still a while before that happens, but when it happens, it's going to be explosive. I hope you'll keep enjoying the story until that happens!_

_To AAA: Don't hate me! Heheh, I hope this chapter makes it up a little for having left off with a cliffhanger in the previous chapter? It's not much of a surprise is it?_

_To BlackFlame004: So what do you think? It's not much of a surprise actually, right? Having Cagalli be the intruder? But still, hope this chapter is a reasonable surprise?_

_To Rai Rai Blue: Hello! Nice to hear from you! I'm glad you enjoy this fic. I wonder which author led you here; I ought to thank him or her too! And what's this about a sequel? I'm actually curious to read it, and see what else can be developed from this fic!_

_Anyways, thanks to one and all for reading and reviewing. I'm always, always glad to hear from you, so don't forget to review, review, review! Tell me, what do you think is going to happen next? Next chapter should be coming soon, sometime at the end of next week, perhaps?_


	46. 45 (edited)

_Author's note: Hi there! __Finally back with two chapters. __Realised something went wrong with the chronology of the story and the timing so I __had to take__ down Chapter 45 and edit it__. P__ut it back up, together with Chapter 46. Some parts of both chapters come from what I've taken down, so for readers who have been keeping up with the chapters so far (and let me just say, thank you, thank you, thank you for that!), some parts may look familiar__, but there's also new stuff__. Hope it's better now and less confusing!_

**Chapter 45 (edited)**

They didn't head back to his apartment immediately.

Athrun made a call as they headed for the car, talked a bit to whoever was on the other end of the phone, and by the time they got to the black convertible, he was done talking and he looked pleased. He unlocked the doors and said to Cagalli over the roof, "Let's head over to Miriallia's. I think she's got some news for me."

Traffic in the middle of the night was minimal and they cruised down the roads and highways at a comfortable and efficient speed. There was silence in the car. Athrun had much to think about. _What news exactly did Miriallia have for him? _The forensic scientist had refused to reveal it on the phone, but she sounded eager enough. And besides, he had the folded package of toothbrush bristles in his pocket to hand to her.

Cagalli too was quiet, immersed in her own thoughts. Head against the window, she watched the odd vehicle stream past and allowed her thoughts to drift back to the house they had just left. The fifth house, sitting silent and empty, in a neighbourhood that didn't look quite friendly. _Could it be that the house belonged to Kira? _Not this 'Kira Hibiki' that Athrun said they were looking for, but her very own brother, Kira Yamato. _Could it be? _

She wanted it to be. She _needed_ it to be. For the first time, in fifteen years, she had received a sign. Call it coincidence, or destiny, or fate, or whatever. It had to be a sign of some sort. For fifteen years, she had seen and heard nothing. It was as if Kira had never existed, as if he had been a mere shadow fading in the light, like those imaginary friends that kids invented to keep them company. But that was not true. He _had_ to have existed, or how would one explain the feeling of loss that had plagued her all those years, since the day she had learnt that her twin brother had disappeared without a trace? She had revisited that day so many times in her mind that she knew the street they had been standing on like the back of her hand. It had been the street behind their house, not the one she was living in with her parents, but the old one – the one they had left behind because it held too many bad memories. Her mother had been adamant about leaving. She had insisted that Kira would not be able to find them if he came back. But ten years later, they just decided that it was time to move on.

So it had been the _old _street where the incident had happened.

Now, Cagalli always revisited the incident like a spectator. In her mind, she saw herself standing at the corner of the street, a little blonde girl, about seven years of age, close to eight. Beside her, was her brother, a boy with brown hair and glittering amethyst eyes. They were shoving at each other and tugging at each other's clothes. The girl was furious because the boy had said that her dress made her look like a girl. She had been livid. She hadn't wanted to wear it in the first place; she much preferred her brother's T-shirt and trousers. She had wanted to give him a sharp, playful smack to the shoulder, just to silence him, when a large shadow cast over them. Two shadows to be precise, merged together to form a larger one. It had spilled over them out of nowhere. The little girl attempted to turn around but a large hand clamped over her face, covering her eyes, her nose and mouth, so that she couldn't see, couldn't breathe. The boy shouted something, but the other stranger grabbed him. A van drew up along the side of the road, but the girl's eyes were covered, so she couldn't see. Then something hit her head, hard, and a bright light flashed through her vision. The last thing she heard was the sound of a man shouting and the sound of tyres screeching. But no matter how hard the little blonde girl strained her ears, she didn't hear her brother. And then all went silent and dark.

No matter how many times Cagalli reflected on it, no matter how many angles she looked at it from, she still couldn't catch a single glimpse of the kidnappers. At first, she had felt afraid and confused when the police officers pushed her to recall the incident over and over again. Then she had felt anger – anger at herself for not being able to recall anything significant to nab the criminals, anger at her parents for having allowed them to head to the park alone, anger at the police for giving up and leaving the case cold, and anger at the whole wide world, for no fathomable reason.

But nothing felt more frightening than the sense of loss that came upon her as she registered the horrifying event. She felt halved, incomplete, deficient, lacking… more alone than ever. She could sit at the table for hours, lost and alone, not knowing what needed to be done, or what its purpose was. She could open the door of the house, and stand on the porch for ages, feeling as if she was waiting for someone. She could pour two glasses of water, only to find that she needed to drink only one, then she would end up drinking both, and filling them up with her tears.

That feeling of loss… The ever-present gap…

Filled up, to a certain extent, for the first time in fifteen years when she stepped through the front door of the fifth apartment.

It had been a weird feeling. As she stood in the doorway of the apartment, Cagalli had felt both familiarity and unfamiliarity. As if the very air within the house had smelled familiar, as if every object she touched had familiar fingerprints impressed all over them. Yet, she knew very well that she had never set foot in this apartment before. It was a foreign environment; there was a lot she found unfamiliar.

_Could it be that Kira had been there before? Could it be that she had just treaded through the very same space her twin had? Was it Kira's presence she was feeling?_

"Did you find anything strange about the apartment?" A voice broke through the silence so suddenly it felt like she had been doused with a pail of ice-cold water.

"What?" Cagalli spun her head around quickly, surprised out of her thoughts, "What did you say?"

Athrun cast a bemused glance at her before turning back to the road. "Are you alright? You've been awfully quiet. Is your head hurting? Do you want me to drive you home first? Or back to my house? The painkillers are in my home, yes?"

"What?" Cagalli said again, slightly disoriented. She shook her head to clear her thoughts, and lifted a hand up to touch the dressing on her brow. "Oh, this? Don't worry, I'm fine. It's not hurting. I took some painkillers before I came to look for you. No, I'm alright, I was just thinking about… stuff. You were saying?"

"I asked, if you found anything strange about the apartment?"

"Strange?" Cagalli pondered the question for a moment, drumming her fingers against the dashboard. "There wasn't anything strange or peculiar. There was nothing worthwhile for us to take, besides those toothbrush bristles, which I'm guessing, may or may not yield results. There was virtually _nothing_ in that house. I've never seen a house with furniture so sparse. How could there be anything strange in there?"

"That's _exactly_ what makes the apartment so strange," Athrun replied.

"What?"

"The sparseness of the house," he explained. "I've never seen a house so bare either. There are not many reasons for a house to be so empty. One, the owner is single. You can't have a whole family living with such sparse furniture. Even a family steeped in poverty would have mats laid out for sleeping and they wouldn't have a nice leather sofa or a marble coffee table. So no, the owner has to be single. And two, the owner is rarely around. Maybe a businessman who travels a lot. Or in our case, a criminal engaged in all sorts of crimes."

A pause, and silence droned on, interrupted only by the quiet hum of the engine.

Cagalli nodded, "That makes sense."

"Another thing," Athrun continued, eyes fixed on the road ahead. "Did you notice that the entire house was spotless?"

Cagalli turned in her seat to face him. A glimmer of revelation brightened her face as she straightened up, curious to know what Athrun wanted to say.

"How clean exactly is your house, Cagalli?"

"Clean enough, I suppose. Why?"

"Mine too," Athrun smiled, "even though I don't spend much time at home and I don't have a housekeeper. But the point is, why are our homes clean?"

"I guess, we do some housekeeping everyday to maintain its cleanliness?"

"Right," Athrun glanced at her. There was a thrill in his emerald eyes, and Cagalli recognized it. It meant that they were getting somewhere. "So how can _that_ house be sparkling clean?"

Cagalli shook her head, frowning. "I don't quite get-" She stopped as the implications of what Athrun was saying dawned on her. "If Lacus has been gone for more than two days…" she began slowly.

A grin began to form on Athrun's face. "And kidnappers have to spend days preparing for the execution of their plan…"

"And if the woman you met – Flay Allster – said that she hadn't seen Kira in two weeks…"

"Not the Kira we know."

"There's no proof to say he isn't," Cagalli retorted quickly, "but anyway, point is, that house should have been empty for nearly two weeks or more… It couldn't be so clean. Someone's been inside recently."

"Exactly," said Athrun. "Someone's been cleaning up, and it's not just your average housekeeping. There wasn't a single strand of hair, or speck of dust, or fingerprint. Either we've got a superbly meticulous housekeeper, or someone's out to make sure every single trace or clue is eliminated. If we assume that Kira Hibiki-"

"Or Kira Yamato."

"No proof yet. But, if we assume that Kira-whoever is the leader of this operation, considering that he and I had a nice conversation on the phone, then he couldn't have been the one who came back to the house and cleaned up. Someone else did it."

"Okay," Cagalli nodded, "so what's _our _plan?"

"Right now, we're going to visit Miriallia Haw and find out what she has for us. Then in the morning, I'm going back-"

"We."

"What?" Athrun quirked an eyebrow at her.

"_We_," Cagalli repeated. "You're not going anywhere alone. _We're _going to do this together."

"Fine," he let out an exasperated sigh. "In the morning, _we_ will go back to the house and see if we can find out from the neighbours who this miraculous housekeeper is."

* * *

The lights in the Central Police Headquarters were still on, even at 1:30a.m. in the middle of the night. The police force was a 24/7 business – criminals didn't have knock-off hours; cases didn't solve themselves, so the law enforcement had to work OT to keep up.

Because of that, Athrun had declined to park within the building itself. They ended up in a multi-story carpark two blocks down and made their approach on foot. The roads were largely empty. Only an occasional vehicle or two sped past them, their engines roaring loudly in the otherwise silent night. The Central Police Headquarters was a massive building constructed of stainless steel and glass and even from far, they could see the glow of lights, randomly distributed across the building's façade.

They paused by the sidewalk, a little ways from the building, and Athrun counted the windows. The seventh window on the sixteenth floor was lit – the Special Unit, or what was left of it, seemed to be hard at work. Cagalli waited as Athrun fished the cell out of his pocket and dialed up his office. It was Meyrin who picked up the phone and she told them that Seiran was out. The detective had decided to bunk in at the Clyne Mansion in case the kidnappers called, and he had brought Nicol and Dearka with him. The office was empty, save for Shinn, Luna and Meyrin herself, who had stayed behind to await orders and mobilize the men if the need arose.

_Seiran out of the picture. __One obstacle down._

So Athrun had Meyrin ring up Murrue Ramius' office next, even though he saw that the second window on the eighteenth floor was dark. The scarlet-haired secretary left him on the line and came back a minute later to inform him that the Assistant Commissioner had gone home.

_It was all perfect._

Except for the two police officers on duty at the lobby.

The lobby of the Central Police Headquarters, like much of the rest of the building, was encased entirely in glass. There were huge glass doors between equally large glass walls. You could see everything going on in the lobby and in the day, the mass of people streaming through the lobby was a sight.

Athrun put out a hand to stop Cagalli's advance. They paused, side-by-side, together in the shadows, just out of the glow of a nearby streetlamp and waited. Neither officer noticed them.

But a second later, one picked up the phone on the desk and listened in to whoever was on the other end of the line. It wasn't a long conversation, and when he replaced the receiver in its cradle, he nudged his partner and both conversed with their heads bent low.

Athrun shrank back into the dark, and tugging on Cagalli's wrist, pulled her after him.

"Have they found out that we're here?" She whispered. "Who's side are they on?"

The blue-haired detective shrugged, emerald eyes focused on the Headquarters's lobby. Both officers had returned to their work, neither seemed greatly affected by whatever had traversed over the phone conversation. Neither looked up or scanned about for intruders.

"I'm not sure," he muttered. Faint mist from his breath clouded over Cagalli's face as they stood close, pressed up against the wall of an office building. The temperatures were dropping relentlessly. Cagalli glanced up into the night sky, but there was no moon or stars. Only an inky blackness. _They were in for a cold winter_, she thought to herself.

"Luna's here."

She followed Athrun's gaze and spotted the familiar crop of scarlet-red hair emerge from a pair of open elevator doors.

Lunamaria passed through the turnstiles and turned towards the entrance, facing out onto the empty street. If she hadn't known what she was looking for, she wouldn't have spotted Athrun, or Cagalli, for they were well-hidden enough, cramped as they were against the front of the neighboring building away from the light. As soon as she caught sight of them, she crossed the lobby in quickly, heading straight for the glass doors. She shoved the right one open with her shoulder, then beckoned to them with an open palm.

Athrun didn't move, and the hand he had on Cagalli's forearm prevented her from moving too.

Until Lunamaria opened the door wider and called out, "Don't worry. They're with us."

Neither officer glanced up when they slipped through the glass doors of the Central Police Headquarters. The trio passed through the turnstiles together, using Luna's entry pass. It was a precaution Athrun had decided to take, because all entries and exits were clocked in. Although Murrue hadn't confiscated his entry pass, he couldn't risk having his particulars clocked into the system at 1:30a.m. in the middle of the night. They cramped into an open elevator and didn't speak until the doors were safely closed behind them. Then Athrun frowned. "I believe the officers aren't part of the Special Unit," he said pointed out as the lift began its ascent.

Lunamaria just cocked her head and flashed a grin at them. "You'll be surprised at the number of allies we have in HQ," she said, "Most of the officers here, including non-Special Unit members, are sympathetic to our situation. It seems like Seiran's made many enemies and they're all more than happy to be of assistance to the Special Unit. Meyrin rang up the officers in the lobby just now and they agreed to cooperate with us." She pointed a finger at the closed-circuit camera in the elevator. "They've shut down the cameras too, just long enough for us to get up there, so no one knows you're here. And this afternoon, the officers-on-duty were more than helpful. They kept Flay Allster's presence a secret for us. Essentially, no one's happy that you've been suspended and we're all eager to see you return to your post, Chief."

Athrun merely responded with a wry smile. "I'm looking forward to that too."

They rode the lift up to the twentieth storey, where they found Miriallia Haw waiting for them in a forensics lab, sitting on a stainless steel revolving chair with her eyes glued to a microscope.

"Perfect timing." She glanced up when the three of them entered and pushed herself away from the bench. "You're just in time. I'll just cut to the chase. I've got some news for you, Athrun. Come and take a look over here." She spun around in her chair and kicked her feet so that she was sliding across the lab, the wheels underneath her seat rattling as they glided across the tiled floor. Athrun, Cagalli and Luna followed her. The brunette hauled herself in front of her computer and pulled up a document. All four crowded around the screen, their heads close.

"Look," Mirallia tapped the glass with a nail. "I've broken down the chemical trace found in the blood sample. One of the synthetic chemicals in there is epinephrine, or what we call adrenalin. But it's what I've told you before: this version has a different structure that enhances its function. So I've compared it with the original and discovered that there's a larger than normal quantity of the compound acetophenone that was used." The forensic scientist gave her mouse a click, and a diagram faded onto the screen. It looked like a complex web cluttered with chemical symbols. "This is acetophenone. It's a raw chemical used in the manufacturing process of pharmaceutics, including adrenalin. I've done some research on the chemical engineering plants that manufacture acetophenone and the molar mass and density of this sample matches the one synthesized by a chemical plant run by Rowell Corporations." Miriallia exchanged the chemical diagram on her screen with the license of the company.

Cagalli leaned forward so that she could get a better look. "Germany?" she asked, puzzled. "Rowell Corporations is based in Germany?"

"Yup," Miriallia smacked her lips and nodded, "But that's just raw acetophenone. Rowell Corporations is involved in chemical engineering, not pharmaceutics. Which means, a pharmaceutical company must have imported acetophenone from Rowell Corporations and used it to alter the structure of adrenalin, to create this new and enhanced sample that we found in the blood at the Clyne Mansion."

"Good job," said Athrun, "now we need the list of companies in the city that have imported acetophenone from Rowell Corporations."

"Already done that," the brunette smiled, "I've pulled up a list of those pharmaceutical companies. But, you need to understand that acetophenone is a very common ingredient in pharmaceutics. It's not a hazardous chemical, so lots of companies order it in bulk." She paused and searched her computer for the document. When it unfolded on the screen, Lunamaria gave a low whistle of dismay. Athrun understood why, for he too felt a sense of disbelief crowding down upon him. The list was _alarmingly _long. It spanned over three pages and each sheet was covered from margin to margin in tiny letters.

"How many companies is _that_?" Cagalli blurted out.

"Forty-two," replied Miriallia. "That's close to eighty percent of the total number of pharmaceutical companies we have based in this city."

Lunamaria ran a hand through her hair and sighed in exasperation. "Well, that just makes our job easier," she muttered sarcastically.

"Don't despair," Miriallia turned her head and flashed a grin at the distraught faces staring back at her. "Good news is, there are a lot of other anomalies in the blood sample – genetic alterations, hormone modifications, additional steroids – so I've got enough material to work with. I've used the same method to narrow down the list." As she tapped at her keyboard swiftly, the individual names on the screen began to change and shift. Some faded while others stood out in bold and the names began to disperse and separate into various columns across the screen, until a single block of words remained evident in focus. "Here we go," said Miriallia, "This is the list of companies that have imported all the various chemicals, compounds and ingredients that I've found in the blood sample."

Athrun ran his finger down the list, the glass screen cold and smooth underneath his fingertip, as he counted off the names. "That's seventeen," he said finally.

"That's a lot better than forty-two," chimed in Cagalli.

"Wait till you see this," Miriallia said smugly. She ran her hands across the keyboard, fingers flying across the keys at rapid and eager speed. The block of words transformed again and thirteen faded into a faint greyness, leaving behind four names that stood out in stark relief. "I found out that one of the steroid hormones contains a chemical known as methylhexanamine. Its safety has been questioned and it's now a largely restricted chemical. Only certain pharmaceutical companies are allowed to import it, and we've got only four in our city that have been given permission to do so. And that's it – the four companies." She swiveled around in her chair and beamed at her companions. "So what do you think?"

Lunamaria shook her head disbelievingly, red tresses bouncing with the vigorous action, but there was an excited smile on her face. "That's awesome, Miriallia," she grinned. "You're a life-saver."

But Athrun said nothing. And his lack of response drew the attention of the women.

"What's wrong?" Cagalli asked quickly, the smile already fading slightly from her face, as she sensed the tension radiating of him.

He said, "It's not four."

"What?"

"We're looking for one in particular, and I think I know which one," the blue-haired detective replied. He leaned forward and jabbed a finger at the screen. The ladies followed his gaze. "I've heard Lacus mention this company before," he said, "DEX enterprises."

"I'm not sure if I see the link-"

"According to Lacus, Kira Hibiki introduced himself as an employee of DEX enterprises."

All three of his audience lapsed into silence as they registered the implications of Athrun's words. _Finally, they were getting somewhere_. To have forty-two companies narrowed down to four was good, but to be able to identify the exact target was beyond their expectations. _It was perfect_.

"Can you get me the details of DEX enterprises? Like who owns it, what do they specialize in and where do they store their chemicals?" Athrun glanced at Miriallia. But before the forensic scientist could respond, Lunamaria interrupted smoothly, "Chief, why don't you leave that to us? Meyrin, Shinn and I can handle that in the office."

Her chief nodded in approval. "Yes, that would be great. I need a couple of other things from you, Luna. First off, any way you can get me a firearm?"

Lunamaria just stared at him.

"My gun's in the AC's possession, and-" He paused to hike up his right trouser leg and unsheathed the blade. Tossing it in one hand, he caught it by its hilt and said, "-this isn't going to be very helpful in the face of gunfire."

Lunamaria laughed. "I never thought the Chief of the Special Unit Athrun Zala would ever be helpless. You're the guy people say can rob the bank with a butter knife, least of all this combat knife."

"Well, resources can limit a man's potential."

"That's true," Luna grinned, then sobered up quickly and said, "I'll have to check about that. Might have to give Yzak a call. He knows these things better than we do. We'll do our best. Anything else, Chief?"

"Give Yzak a call, but tell him that his priority remains with the serum. Don't _ever _let it out of sight. And Luna, you guys need to stop Seiran if he tries to remove the vial from the safehouse. It mustn't get into the hands of the kidnappers or Lacus' safety will be undermined."

"Got it."

"One more thing. I need you to find out who owns this house." He rattled off the address of Kira Hibiki's apartment, which Luna scribbed on the back of her hand with a pen she grabbed off Miriallia's bench.

Then, turning to Miriallia, Athrun said, "I need another favour from you." He produced the folded package from his pocket and uncovered the snipped fragments of synthetic fibers. "I got my hands on the toothbrush of one of the masterminds. I'll greatly appreciate it if you could get me a DNA sample."

"How in the world did you get this?"

Athrun gave a weak smile. "It's better if you didn't know."

"Right," the brunette looked at him grimly, "But you should know then, that any evidence that you collect without proper procedure can't be submitted in court."

"Priority #1 is to ensure Lacus' security. As for the rest, we'll cross that bridge when we get there."

"Okay."

"How much time do you need?"

"Minimum?" Miriallia winced, "about sixteen hours."

"Sixteen hours?" Cagalli snapped. "Lacus will be dead by then."

Athrun ignored her outburst, but he too felt her sense of dread. "Can you quicken the process?"

The forensic scientist just shook her head.

"Okay, just… do your best, Miriallia. Everything depends on the DNA result."


	47. 46

**Chapter 46:**

Kira roused precisely at 4:00a.m. and found himself feeling a lot better than he had felt before drifting to sleep. His head was resting more solidly on his shoulders; his sight more focused and his thoughts less baffling. He had only been asleep for an hour, but that hour had worked miracles. He shifted, stretched his back and unfolded himself out of his little corner.

Stellar was watching him, her violet eyes glinting under the harsh fluorescence. She was in the chair Kira had occupied in his first shift, her chin on her knees, her feet tucked in. In the same precarious balancing act he had seen her sleeping in.

She was silent until he got to his feet and approached her. Then gazing up at him, she smiled a faint smile, "Morning."

"Morning."

"Did you have a good sleep?"

Kira shrugged, and returned her smile with one of his own. "Not bad." He found an empty chair which he set beside Stellar and straddled it backwards, so that he could fold his arms across the back of the chair.

Auel had changed sleeping positions. He had sank lower down into his chair, arms folded across his chest, head back, pale blue hair spilling over the back of his chair. Sting was still in his little isolated corner, but he had slid down into a lying position, with his right arm thrown back to pillow his head. Both of them slept on despite the scrape of Kira's metal chair against the concrete floor. _A survival skill they had all picked up: sleep while you can_. Despite their calm and composed appearances, Kira knew too that his team members were not any less deadly. It was just another rule of the game: _they were not easily awakened by the mundane sounds around them, but any peculiar sound – the soft tread of an intruder, the soft click of a gun's safety lever, the hiss of a blade scything through air – and they would be jolted out of their sleep as if the very building they were in had been rocked by an explosion_. It was an essential skill to master if you wanted to have any decent sleep at all, considering that they found themselves sleeping in odd and foreign places each time they were on a mission.

Kira turned to Stellar and found her staring intently at the monitor which showed Lacus Clyne huddled in her corner asleep. Stellar had her eyes fixed on the screen and she didn't turn back to meet his gaze. He could sense it – the mild tension that still resonated between them, like a smothering fire gasping for air.

"You've got something you want to say to me." It was a statement, not a question.

Stellar turned to him, lilac eyes wide with slight surprise. "I've got nothing to say," she murmured.

He didn't respond to that. Just fixed his own amethyst eyes on her.

Stellar turned away. "It's _your_ decision," she said with a wry smile, "I've got no right to interfere." The words sounded alright. Except for the bitterness in her tone that was at odds with the smile on her face.

"But?" Kira said.

She turned back again to look at him with confusion.

"I can sense a 'but' in that sentence," he gave her a faint smile.

He watched as she hesitated, as if wrestling with herself internally before coming to a decision. "But," she said finally, "I think there's something strange going on and you should find out." Then quickly added again, "Still, it's _your _decision."

Kira laughed at that. "_My _decision?" A smirk crossed his face, "You mean the '_my _life, _my _choice' kind of thing?"

"Something like that."

Kira laughed again. "Only problem is, I think our lives belong to Rau."

"That's true," Stellar reciprocated with an amused grin.

They lapsed into an awkward silence again, the topic fizzling out before them, like a taboo that couldn't be spoken about.

"So," Stellar winced, "you're not going to find out more? Even if there is obviously something peculiar about this?"

"It's not in our position to question these things, Stellar," Kira admonished, his tone taking on a more serious one, "it's not about whether we have the right to know or not. It's not about whether we are curious or not. It's about survival, Stellar. If you and I want to live, we're going to have to forget all about this conversation. It's what we've been fighting for all this while – to make sure we stay on Rau's good side and stay alive. That's it. That's just it. You don't want to end up like another one of Rau's victims. You don't want him to send another team of genetically modified bastards to hunt you down. Everything we do now, it's for _our own _survival." He glanced at Stellar, who avoided his eye and stared at the floor. When she lifted her gaze, her eyes were tinged with redness.

"Sometimes," she whispered. "I wish I could die."

"We all do," Kira said grimly. "But we can't. _They _won't let us. So the most we can do, is to keep each other alive. And I want to keep you, and Auel, and Sting alive. That's my job. That's why I can't go off and find out who 'Kira Yamato' is. That's why I can't let you find out either." He reached out towards her with a reassuring hand and ran gentle fingers through her blonde locks, brushing them back away from her face. She was like a child, all folded into herself, knees tucked to her chest.

"Besides, if you die, who's going to care for your fishes?" He added, smiling.

That got Stellar's attention. Her eyes drifted towards the glass cylinder set on the desk, in a safe corner away from the mess of computers, monitors and wires. The fishes were still and unmoving in the water, like suspended in open air. Asleep, perhaps. But you could never really tell with fishes. They slept with their eyes open. The team had bought the aquarium for her, when they found out that the side-effects of the medication and drugs made her suicidal. It hadn't been a pleasant discovery. But then again, the rest of the team hadn't been happy learning about their own side-effects either. Still, they had found ways to overcome them, ways to minimize their effect, ways to manage each other when things got out of control. Kira had told her to kill off a fish each time she felt the urge to die. He said that watching the life seep away from another living thing would ease the desires. The first time it had happened, she couldn't get herself to do it. But she realised that just watching the vulnerable little creatures weave their way amongst the weeds, their rainbow scales glinting and reflecting off each other, served as a fine distraction. And so, she found her own little 'hobby'.

She glanced up at Kira, who met her gaze with his soft, warm eyes. "Alright."

"That's our girl," he praised, drawing back with a grin, when she favoured him a smile. "Now," he glanced at his watch. _4:29a.m._ Almost time for the final showdown. "Let's wake Auel and Sting. It's time we got ready for our debut performance."

* * *

Miriallia's couch was lumpy but Athrun wasn't complaining. It was not that he was comfortable, because he wasn't (the couch was a two-sitter settee and he had difficulty folding his lean body just so that he could jam himself into the narrow seat and not roll down. Plus, the valley between the upholstery was messing severely with his spine). It was because he wasn't sleeping, or at least, the gears in his mind were still spinning. His body, on the other hand, _might_ be feeling the exhaustion.

He crossed his arms across his chest and tried to get comfortable, wriggling about so that his left shoulder could tuck nicely into the gap between the armrest and back of the sofa. It didn't work. So he thought instead about what he had to do once dawn broke.

Athrun would have preferred to head out immediately. _Time was of essence, and Lacus didn't have much left._ But Miriallia and Luna had both convinced him to stay for the night and Athrun had to admit that their reasons made sense. He wanted to return to Kira Hibiki's apartment and find out who had entered the house recently, but the neighbours sure would not appreciate someone knocking on their doors in the middle of the night. He was also tempted to charge all the way to DEX enterprises, but Lunamaria and the team needed time to gather their research and he needed time to work the clues and put together the jigsaw pieces.

_Athrun had never believed in coincidences. __When __something__ happens the first time, okay. The second time, okay. The third time? Not okay._

_Lacus had mentioned DEX enterprises, he was sure of it. But back then, the trail had gone cold – none of the photographs of DEX enterprises' employees had matched the man Lacus had danced with. Of the four DEX enterprises' representatives invited to the Clyne Mansion, Lacus said that none of the photographs had been that of the elusive Kira Hibiki. Athrun had deduced that whoever the man was, had given her an assumed name, or that the four guests that had turned up in the place of the employees had been imposters. There were a lot of questions and a lot of possibilities. _

_But the mention of DEX enterprises again made _Athrun sure that he was one step closer to finding Lacus. He just needed a little more, so that he had enough to save Lacus. He wasn't looking to take down the kidnappers – that could wait. His goal was simply to save her.

That thought was nearly enough to get Athrun moving from the couch and rushing for his car, although he had no idea where to begin his search. But as he glanced over to the other side of Miriallia's office, and saw Cagalli curled up in another one of Miriallia's sofas, he sank back into the upholstery.

Cagalli was smaller in size, and fitted the couch much better than he did. She was asleep, head against the armrest. It was when Miriallia pointed out that Cagalli needed the rest, even if he did not, that made him pause and hesitate, eventually taking up the forensic scientist's offer to use her office couches' as temporary bunks. She was right – he had been dragging Cagalli all over town, even though she was injured and needed respite.

Athrun watched her as she slept, and wondered if what Cagalli said was true and the implications of that truth. Everything would change, if Kira was alive and came back. Everything would change, if his enemy was Kira. He wasn't sure if he could pull the trigger if he came face-to-face with his childhood friend.

Yet, he would do it, if it meant that he could save Lacus, or Cagalli, or anyone else as a matter-of-fact. Because if Kira came to harm someone, he wouldn't be the Kira that Athrun knew.

Athrun shut his eyes and tried to block out those thoughts. Getting stressed about it wouldn't help his cause. He opened his eyes to glance at his watch and saw that it was 4:30a.m. Lacus had been MIA for nearly fifty-six hours. In all other kidnapping cases, such a situation would have been considered a lost cause. Police officers wouldn't say that, but there was no doubt that they were thinking about it. Athrun refused to.

A rap on the door snapped him out of his thoughts. He glanced up over the edge of the armrest, his right cheek pressed tight against the velvet, and saw Shinn standing in the doorway of Miriallia's office.

"Problems sleeping, Chief?"

"Yes," Athrun admitted. He swung his legs over the edge of the couch and hauled himself into a sitting position, elbows propped up on his knees. Shinn pushed himself off the doorframe and approached on silent feet. He sat down beside Athrun on the couch and watched as Athrun rubbed his tired face with both hands.

"Yzak's got you what you wanted," he whispered.

Athrun glanced over and noticed that Shinn had his hand snuck into his coat. Surreptitiously, Shinn withdrew his hand and Athrun caught a glimpse of the familiar black metal. He reached out and took it from Shinn, quietly slipping it into the pocket of his own jacket, together with the spare magazine that Shinn also produced. "It's a .357 SIG," Shinn said quietly, "15 rounds in each magazine."

"How did Yzak get this to you?"

"Luna passed on the message to Yzak and he pulled a couple of strings. One of his pals in the Firearms Department knew a guy involved in the illegal trade of weapons but turned witness for a case. He's still got some connections in the business though so Yzak bullied him into getting the SIG. I just met him four blocks away to get this gun."

"Is this going to leave a paper trail?"

"Not likely. The guy's keeping mum about it because he knows he'll get in trouble. He's got a share in a shop selling guns to patrons without licenses and he knows he ought to keep his mouth shut. So it's all good."

"Okay."

"And Luna wanted me to pass you this." Shinn dug into his pocket again and drew out a caliber handgun. It was small, almost tiny in Shinn's hand. "A .22 revolver. She keeps it in her purse when she's off duty. Says it's suitable for the ladies." He gestured at the still sleeping Cagalli. "We figured that if Cagalli's tagging along with you, you're bound to get yourselves into trouble. Would be good for Cagalli to hang on to a gun. You'll have to teach her how to fire it though."

Athrun nodded and slipped it into his jacket pocket too, alongside the spare magazine for his own SIG. Both his jacket pockets were now weighed down and it was obvious to any practiced eye that he had firearms in them. He wished he had brought his gun holster, but quickly dismissed that regret for he had other things to focus on. "How's the research going on?"

Shinn shrugged. "I believe Meyrin's compiling the data. We should have some news in about half an hour or so."

"Okay."

* * *

Kira sat back and watched as Sting hooked up one monitor to another. The mess of devices and machinery that littered the warehouse floor was astounding. And so were the things that Sting could do with them. "How much more time do you need?" He called out.

His green-haired accomplice grinned. "I just need five minutes or so to get the system running and then we should be able to begin tracing the whereabouts of Yzak Joule."

"And wherever Mr. Joule is, will be where the serum is," Auel added in a singsong manner, as he twirled around in his chair.

"Right." Kira said, smiling. He leaned back against the wall and settled down for the wait. After all, unlike Athrun Zala, he had all the time in the world.

_Author's note: There! More action coming up in the next chappie so stay tuned! And don't forget to review, review, review! Tell me, what do you think about this chapter, and what do you think is going to happen next!_


	48. 47

_Author's note: Apologies, everyone, for the extremely long delay! I was having my exams and simply couldn't find any scrap of time to write this chapter. Now that I'm into my vacation, I should be able to speed up my writing, so hopefully, more chapters to come in the next few days… Meanwhile, here's a slightly longer chapter to make up for the delay. So read on, and hope you enjoy it._

**Chapter 47:**

Dearka roused the moment he heard Nicol's exclamation, right hand reaching instinctively for the gun at his hip. "What?" he blurted out blearily, sitting bolt upright from the couch where he was curled up in.

The he realized that he didn't need to wait for Nicol's reply. He knew exactly what was happening. The phone was ringing its head off, its shrill scream piercing the silence. He stared at it for a second, and turned to glance round at his companions.

Siegel Clyne was awake. And judging from the clean, un-creased state of his suit, Dearka figured that the man hadn't slept a wink. He was sitting across from him, eyes fixed intensely on the buzzing phone, as if his entire life depended on it, which was probably true. His face looked calm and composed though. Only the deep furrow in his brow betrayed his anxiety. Meanwhile, Nicol was shoving at Seiran to no avail – Moron Seiran was so deep in his sleep, he could have been dead.

_For heaven's sakes_, Dearka snapped in his mind.

He scrambled to his feet, rushed for the sleeping man and hauled his supervisor into an upright position and yelled unceremoniously into the man's face. "Detective Seiran!" He considered swinging his palm across the sleeping man's face, and decided that he liked the idea – it would be nothing compared to what Seiran deserved for putting his chief through all that shit. But fortunately for his victim (and unfortunately for Dearka), Yuna Roma Seiran woke up with a start. Under other circumstances, Dearka might have laughed to see the array of expressions on Seiran's face. For a moment, Seiran looked dazed, the astounded by Dearka's outrageous display of disrespect, but eventually he caught on and began batting furiously at Dearka's hands, which were still holding him in place. "Alright, I'm awake. Let go now!"

Dearka released him, and Seiran was quick to bounce back to his usual self. "Well, don't just stand there," he snapped, pointing at Nicol with a finger, "Get ready to trace the call." With the other hand, he gestured at Siegel Clyne, who, by now, was looking less composed by the second. "Pick up the phone at the count of three," he instructed. Already, the infuriating air of professionalism was creeping into his voice and stance. Dearka rolled his eyes, but held his tongue and settled himself obediently beside Nicol.

"One," Seiran said.

"Two minutes, Mr. Clyne," Nicol reminded, "We need the call to last at least two minutes." Siegel Clyne nodded and leaned forward, teetering at the edge of the couch. His hand hovered over the phone receiver.

"Two," Seiran said.

Nicol's hands flashed over his keyboard and nodded to indicate he was ready.

"Three," Seiran said.

Siegel Clyne picked up the phone and held it to his ear. "Hello, Siegel Clyne speaking."

Dearka had to hand it to him. Even in a situation like that, with Moron Seiran in charge, Siegel Clyne could still keep his cool. He knew now why his chief respected his adoptive father so much, and why Siegel Clyne could qualify as the best thing that had happened to Athrun. Siegel Clyne was silent as he listened to the speaker on the other side of the phone, then after a quick moment, he pried the receiver from his ear and tilted it towards Seiran. "He wants to speak to you, Detective."

Detective Seiran just stared.

"He said he wants to speak to you," Siegel repeated. "Now."

Seiran made a move to shake his head. The word "no" was already forming at his lips but Siegel Clyne just went on speaking, "He said you don't the right to reject any of his requests. He asked me to remind you that Lacus is with him, together with your next promotion."

"What?" Seiran blurted out. But Dearka noticed that the detective's hand was already moving towards the phone receiver. _The asshole_, he thought to himself, _the promotion-seeking, downright stupid fool was falling into the trap._

Seiran put the phone receiver to his ear tentatively, as if it were a ticking bomb that would explode. "Hello?"

"Hello, Detective Seiran." The voice on the other end of the receiver sounded amused, which frightened Seiran a little. "Y-Yes." He realised he was stammering, so he cleared his throat in a hurry, and pretended not to see the disapproving looks that Nicol and Dearka were flashing him. He was their _chief_, he didn't need to answer to them. Straightening to his full height, he replied nonchalantly, "Yes, that's me. What do you want?"

"Very nice to meet you, Detective Seiran. I figured that it's only polite for me to call and speak to the new supervisor of this operation."

"How did you know I'm in charge now?" Seiran asked, failing to hide the anxiety from his voice.

There was a low laugh. It rattled across the phone line, a sound that grated on Seiran's nerves. "What?" He snapped. He felt a tinge of panic, and annoyance. _Who the hell did this guy think he was? _"What's so funny?" A hand reached out for the phone receiver, but he evaded it. Dearka shook his head warningly, "Detective Seiran-" Seiran covered the phone receiver with his palm. "I've got this under control," he hissed. When he returned his attention to the speaker, the laughter on the other end of the phone had died down.

"I know a lot, Detective. Including the fact that you've got the serum in a safe house, and Detective Yzak Joule is guarding it. You don't plan on giving me the serum at all, Detective. You're just playing games with me. So I'm not going to beat about the bush. New rules, Detective - I want you to order your men to withdraw from the safe house immediately. Every single one of them. Pick up your phone and give Mr. Joule a call right now."

"If you think I am going to listen to a criminal, you-"

Seiran's words were cut off by the stranger, who simply said, "Don't test me, Mr. Seiran. If you think I'm playing around, just ask your predecessor. Athrun Zala, I believe? He'll tell you how many of his friends and colleagues I've killed. Last warning, Detective Seiran. Withdraw _all _your men from the safehouse right now, or you can forget about seeing Lacus Clyne." He paused. "And your promotion. We both know you've got a bright future ahead of you, nephew of the Police Commissioner and all. Rescuing Lacus Clyne will look good on your portfolio. Don't let _me_ ruin it."

The line went dead.

And Dearka exploded abruptly. "Oh, shit!" he snarled when he saw Seiran drop the phone from his ear. "Oh shit, oh no," he muttered, stabbing both hands into his hair and clenching the blonde strands tightly in his fists. "Nicol, how long did that take? Tell us you got something."

His teammate simply shook his head, and placed a flat, decisive palm on the top of his laptop screen. The laptop folded shut with a loud, disappointing snap. Frustration was plastered over the green-haired detective's face. "A minute and fifty-two seconds," Nicol replied, "We needed just a little more time. It's just like the previous call. They're doing this on purpose. They're obviously timing the call and they know when to cut us off."

Dearka turned his attention to Seiran. The purple-haired detective was staring at the phone receiver as if it were alive and barking at him. "Are you alright, Detective Seiran?" He raised his volume, barely able to mask the contempt in his voice. "What did the kidnappers say? What are their instructions?"

His temporary chief glanced up at him, gaze a little stunned and lost, and when he spoke, Dearka thought that Seiran had gone nuts. "Call Detective Joule immediately and ask him to pull the team out."

* * *

Dearka didn't call Yzak. At least not immediately, as Seiran had requested.

He called Athrun first, and got him after a long nerve-wrecking, nail-biting minute. His boss didn't sound pleased to hear what he had to say.

"Where are you now?" His chief said curtly.

Dearka winced. When his boss got all taciturn and brusque, trouble wasn't too far off. "In the Clyne Mansion," he replied.

"Seiran there with you?"

"Yes."

"Does he know you're on the phone with me?"

Dearka glanced round the pillar he was using as his refuge and eyed the entrance of the Clyne Mansion's study critically. He caught a glimpse of Siegel Clyne, perched on the edge of the couch. And he glanced the dithering figure of Yuna Roma Seiran as the man paced the length of the room, arms gesticulating wildly, and Nicol who was busy keeping Seiran occupied. "No. He's busy right now," Dearka said into his cell.

"Good," Athrun said, "Keep it that way. We're chasing down some clues over here. I need more time. Can you stall Seiran?"

"I'll do my best."

"Okay. Keep me posted." Athrun snapped his cell shut, dropped it into his lap and slammed both fists into the steering wheel, startling Cagalli, who whipped her head around and stared at him. "What's wrong? Who was that?"

Athrun heaved a sigh and straightened in his chair. _This was just fantastic, _he thought bitterly. _Just when everything seemed hopeful_. They had started the day on what he had considered to be a relatively good note. Luna had slipped out to procure breakfast, and they had eaten it together – the six of them – all huddled up in Miriallia's office, poring over details of DEX enterprises. The burger was greasy, but enormous, and satisfied his hunger considerably – Athrun had forgotten that he had missed dinner and he was ravenous. The machines in the lab were busy churning out the DNA profile from the toothbrush bristles. The .357 SIG felt nice and familiar resting against his hip. Meyrin had compiled the data on DEX enterprises and Athrun had had some time to scan through the file while he ate.

DEX enterprises was a drug-testing company based in New York, but it owned a lab in the city. It was registered under the name Dexter Smith, a forty-year old man who didn't like the spotlight much for there was hardly any information on him. It appeared to be a regular pharmaceutical company; there were no records of suspicious illegal activities. But Athrun was sure there had to be something strange about it, which was why he had Cagalli to pore over it. They had snuck out of the headquarters at 5 a.m., before Assistant Commissioner Ramius had reported for work.

_Everything going smoothly, except for the piece of news Dearka had just delivered. _Athrun shoved the gear into 'drive' with the flat of his palm, a little more viciously than he had intended. _Trust Seiran to ruin things_. He eased the car out of the parking lot and headed for the exit of the multi-storey carpark, talking to Cagalli as he drove. "It was Dearka. The kidnappers called and spoke to Seiran. They demanded that Seiran have Yzak and the other officers removed and Seiran's approved the withdrawal from the safe house."

"No way," Cagalli glanced up from the file and stared at him. "How could he make such a foolish decision?"

"It's Seiran." Athrun replied simply. The convertible swung out onto the main road and Athrun gunned the engine. Traffic had picked up a little from the previous night, but it was still relatively quiet.

"So," Cagalli worried at her lip with her teeth, "what do we do now? How do we stop Seiran? And just what do the kidnappers want?"

Athrun didn't answer right away. _They were onto something_, he could sense it. _Fuck_, he didn't just sense it, he _knew_ it. They were moving slowly but surely towards the final destination. Only problem was, he couldn't afford to move _slowly. _He didn't have a whole lot of time. And as if the whole wide world was out to remind him of it, a deep blue sedan slid in front of his convertible, cruising at what appeared to Athrun, to be a freaking snail's pace. Athrun swore under his breath and swerved the car into the right lane, then back into the left again, overtaking the sedan. He got a cacophony of horns, from both the sedan and the vehicles in the right lane. He ignored them.

He could sense that Cagalli wanted to say something about his reckless driving, but she kept her mouth shut dutifully, clutching the file and papers in her lap with one hand to prevent them from sliding into the foot well, the other clutching the seatbelt crossing her torso.

"Sorry," he muttered, just to break the silence.

He suddenly felt the urge to make a fast u-turn and send Cagalli all the way back to her home. The Yamatos had to be fretting now. The fact that Cagalli had called them yesterday, promised she would be home in a few days, and that she was safe and sound with Athrun, didn't matter. And neither did the fact that the Yamatos seemed to trust Athrun, after all they had grown up together. Because if they ever found out that the only child they had left, who had just been discharged from the hospital with stitches in her head, was running all over the city with him and his unruly driving, they would likely suffer from a heart attack.

"Don't even think about it."

He glanced round at Cagalli, whose amber eyes were narrowed at him. "If you even send me within a mile of my house, I am going to jump out of this car," She warned. "So don't you get into your over-protective mode. We made a deal to get through this together and I am _choosing_ to tag along with you. I'll bear responsibility for my own choices. So stop piling all that blame onto yourself. Just tell me what's the plan and I'm all in."

Athrun sighed resignedly. He was probably going to regret it when things started going crazy all over the city, but for now, he had made his own choice, which really wasn't much of a choice.

"We're going to head back to that apartment and talk to some of the neighbours. See if we can get some hints on who has been cleaning the place up. After that-" he glanced over at Cagalli, "we're going to pop by DEX enterprises and speak to some of the scientists and find out what they use metheylhexanamine for. As for Seiran, Dearka and Nicol will stall for time."

"Okay, so what do you need me to do now?"

Athrun nodded towards the file in her lap. "Look through the file on DEX enterprises. Tear it apart. There's got to be something suspicious in there. We need to find what it is, and that's going to lead us one step closer to Lacus."

* * *

By the time Dearka got back to the study, Seiran was giving Nicol hell for failing to trace the call.

"We need better technology," Seiran snapped, then hearing Dearka's footsteps from the hallway, he whirled around and faced the blonde man. "Aren't you the IT expert? How is it that the both of you couldn't locate where the call was made from? This is the Special Unit, for heaven's sakes. This is unacceptable! And what did Detective Joule say? Has he and all the men pulled out yet?"

"Yzak's patrolling the perimeter of the safe house. The call was patched through to one of his subordinates instead. He said the moment Yzak's back in the safe house, he'll get Yzak to call," Dearka lied smoothly.

"This is unacceptable!" Seiran repeated. "Doesn't Detective Joule have any other phone lines? Have you tried his cell? His radio? How can a detective be unreachable?"

Dearka shrugged, "I've tried his cell and his radio. The signals aren't very good at the safehouse. I couldn't get him. We'll just have to wait."

* * *

The neighbourhood looked a little friendlier in the day. Less shifty.

Athrun aligned his car with the road kerb and shoved the gearshift into 'park'. He got out and stepped around the hood to join Cagalli on the sidewalk. She was staring up at the fifth apartment, which stood still and quiet, its blinds still drawn down across the twin windows on each side of the door. There was an intense expression on Cagalli's face, as if she were waiting for someone to open the door, and hoping it was a familiar face.

"Come on," Athrun muttered, slipping his hand into hers and squeezing it gently. She came after him, albeit a little reluctant, and they headed towards the apartment on the left. The fourth one in the row. They ascended the steps together, but the porch was narrow and only Athrun could stand on the highest step, Cagalli one step behind him. Athrun rang the doorbell and there was a faint chime that resonated somewhere deep in the house.

"Coming!" A yell sounded from behind the door. It was a woman.

Athrun and Cagalli shared a glance, then turned back quickly to the door, just as it opened up from inside. The woman standing in the doorway was wringing her hands on a dish towel. She paused, and looked at them, curiosity plastered on her face. "Can I help you?"

Athrun let an easy smile creep onto his face. "Hi, I'm so sorry to bother you this morning, ma'am. I'm here to visit my cousin. He lives next door." He pointed at the fifth apartment just to reiterate his point. "But he seems to be out and we couldn't contact him. We were hoping to take a seat inside first because my girlfriend's recovering from an accident." Athrun shifted aside so that the woman could see Cagalli, who gave a weak smile. The woman's eyes travelled to the bandage on Cagalli's brow, and a look of sympathy came upon her face. "So," Athrun continued, "my cousin said he had a housekeeper who comes to clean up his house and the housekeeper is due to come in this morning. We were just wondering if you knew who the housekeeper was and if you could provide some sort of description, we'll know who to look out for?"

"Oh, I see," the woman finished drying her hands on her dish towel and she folded it absently as she talked, "To be honest, I don't know _him _that well." She put her head out of the door and Athrun had to lean back a little so that she didn't collide into him. She glanced over at the fifth apartment. "He's your cousin?" She asked, "Well, I really can't say I know much about your cousin. He's hardly ever at home. But he looks nice enough, too quiet, perhaps. Just smiles at my kids, my husband or me when we greet him. I don't even know his name. Not to mention his housekeeper. In fact, I didn't even know he had one. I've never seen anyone else coming to the house, but then again, I go out to work most of the day, so maybe I've missed it."

"Oh, right," Athrun smiled, "it's alright then. We'll just go over to the next house and try our luck."

"Sure. Nice to meet you."

They stood on the porch a little longer until the woman had closed the door, then they came back down the stairs and headed for the apartment on the right – the sixth one in the row.

"Girlfriend?" Cagalli said as they walked down the footway. She crooked a curious eyebrow at him. Athrun just smiled and shrugged. "She believed it," he said simply.

The sixth apartment on the street was opened up by an older woman with slightly graying hair. She looked sympathetic when Athrun relayed his story again, but she gave the same answers, and got Athrun and Cagalli nowhere. When she offered to let Cagalli rest in her house, Athrun declined politely and they waited again for the older woman to close the door before coming back down the stairs.

"Are we going to try any more of these houses?" She asked, as they stood on the sidewalk, glancing down both ends of the street.

"What are the chances of success, if the people in closest geographical proximity to our target do not even have a clue?" Athrun said.

"Right, so what do we do now?"

"Let's go and speak to Flay Allster and see if she knows something about this housekeeper."

* * *

Stellar hunkered down in the dark blue sedan, watching as Athrun Zala and Cagalli Yamato crossed the road and headed for the diner. _Things were getting heated now. Athrun Zala was sniffing them down more quickly than they had expected._

In an attempt to slow him down, Stellar had eased the sedan in front of his, like a tired, cautious female driver who was doggedly heading home. But Athrun Zala maneuvered his convertible skillfully and jumped the queue, despite the obvious irritation of the other road-users. She had to compress the horn and warn him off, just to blend in with the annoyed crowd. But because of that, she had to fall back behind several cars, in case she had drawn too much attention to herself. But Athrun Zala hadn't even looked at her.

When his black convertible turned into Kira's neighbourhood, Stellar knew they were in trouble. Athrun Zala had uncovered things they hadn't expected. Problem was, how much did he know, and how much more was he going to find out in the next few hours?

She watched from afar as the blue-haired detective and his blonde companion slid through the front doors of the diner and disappeared from view. Then she picked up her cell.

Kira answered after only two rings. "What's happening on Athrun Zala's side?"

Stellar inhaled a deep breath before she spoke, certain that Kira wouldn't like the news one bit. "I tailed him from the police headquarters. He headed straight for your apartment."

There was silence on the other end of the phone. Stellar winced. She wasn't sure if Kira was surprised, or frustrated. There was also a possibility that Kira was already thinking ahead and calculating his next move. She waited patiently.

"Where is he now?" The tone was sharp and terse.

"He's in the diner, with Cagalli Yamato. I think he's going to talk to Flay Allster."

* * *

No one could accuse Rau Le Creuset of being impatient. He was a very patient man – he could wait years to get what he wanted.

But Athrun Zala was something else.

The detective tested his patience every step of the way, stretching it to its limits.

He glared up at the scientist standing in his doorway, who faltered back a step under the intense stare. _Fuck them_, he thought to himself, _none of his subordinates could get things done fast and right, just the way he wanted them done. _Rau had been annoyed when the man burst through his door gabbling. He hated people who got flustered easily – being flustered didn't solve problems. And when the scientist had finally calmed down enough to tell him what the problem was, Rau realized that the other type of people he hated, were those who tested his patience.

"The agent we sent to keep an eye on Kira's apartment – the housekeeper," the scientist wheezed, trying to catch his breath. "She said a man and a woman had come asking about Kira. She identified them as Athrun Zala and Cagalli Yamato. It seems that Athrun Zala has caught onto us. What do we do now, Sir?"

Rau Le Creuset leaned back in his chair. Indeed, what were they to do now? _If he had been there, he would have shot Athrun Zala point-blank. That would have solved all their problems. But no, his people always had to wait for his orders. They were like machines, which annoyed him a little sometimes. They could only provide him with problems, not solutions_. _And none of them had guts, except… maybe Kira. _Rau smiled. Kira was indeed a fine specimen. Not many people dared to glare at Rau when he was the one holding a gun flushed against their temple. Only Kira – the boy's hatred for him was so obvious. And Rau was okay with it, as long as Kira got things done the way he wanted them.

A thought stirred in him and made Rau grin. _Imagine the two of them – Athrun Zala and Kira Hibiki. What a fine collection he would have._ _But until then…_

Rau reached for a slip of paper and scribbled his message on it, pen nib scratching across the white surface rapidly. Then he folded it in half and tipped it towards the scientist in his doorway. The man stared for a second, then inched forward and took it between thumb and index finger, like a man about to prod a ticking bomb.

"Make sure Kira gets this message," Rau said, turning back to his paperwork, and dismissing the frightened man with a wave of his hand.

_Author's note: Woohoo! Finally! Okay, I'm a little excited about this chapter and the next one to come. Couldn't resist torturing Seiran – he deserves all that for putting Athrun through that crap in GSD! Anyways, the next few chapters should be exciting enough. Can't wait! Meanwhile, don't forget to review, review, review and let me know what you think about this chapter and what's going to happen next!_


	49. 48

**Chapter 48:**

The greasy spoon was a narrow little place, with a Formica counter running along one side, separating the kitchen from the cramped booths where the customers huddled around aluminum tables. It was still early and the place was empty of customers. They found Flay Allster behind the Formica counter, rubbing down some glasses with a rag. She had already recognized Athrun through the glass windows and there was an anxious expression plastered across her face when both of them stepped into the diner.

"Is it Kira?" She said, putting down both glass and rag. "Is he alright? Did something happen to him?"

"No, he's fine," Athrun said smoothly. He felt Cagalli take a step forward at the mention of the name 'Kira', and he touched her arm gently to restrain her. "I'm so sorry to disturb you again so early this morning, Miss Allster, but I just have a question." He was interrupted by a man who poked his head out of the kitchen first before stepping out. "Can we help you?" the newcomer said, running a hand through pale brown hair, bemused eyes staring from behind auburn tinted glasses.

"Oh," Flay Allster said, stepping away from the counter. She beckoned towards the man and said to him, "This is Detective Athrun Zala. He's the one who's got news on Kira." Turning to Athrun and Cagalli, she gave a smile, "Sai Argyle, my fiancé. We run this place together." Athrun introduced Cagalli and they shook hands with Sai over the counter.

"Right," Athrun said, drawing them back to the conversation, "Just a quick question, Miss Allster. I'd like to find out if you know of someone who cleans up Mr. Hibiki's apartment. Does he hire a housekeeper or something?"

Flay Allster paused for a while before she answered, twirling a lock of blood-red hair between her fingers. "No," She shook her head, "Not that I know of. Kira's never mentioned hiring one." She glanced over at her fiancé who shrugged his shoulders.

"Have you seen anyone entering or leaving the house?"

Another long pause. "No, I'm afraid not."

"Okay." Athrun exchanged a glance with Cagalli, then nodded his appreciation. "We'll get a move on then, Miss Allster. We've got some other work to get done. Very nice to meet you, Mr. Argyle."

"You'll call when Kira's ready to meet us?" Flay Allster asked again.

Athrun nodded, even though it was an outright lie. "Will do," he said, already backing towards the exit of the diner, Cagalli a step behind him.

* * *

He was on his way back to the hideout, when he received the call from Stellar. After she told him that Athrun Zala and Cagalli Yamato had left the diner, he instructed her to keep him posted, then hung up and replaced the cell in his jacket pocket.

_Things were looking bad. _And Kira figured that they could only get worse. _All his missions were like that – the longer you dragged it out, the more potential there was for things to blow up in your face. And no one said kidnapping was done in a matter of minutes. _Time was ticking. He racked up his left sleeve and checked his watch. _6:30 a.m._ They had only twelve and a half more hours to go. But if Yuna Roma Seiran had been frightened enough to take his advice, then he could wrap this all up in less than five.

Unless, of course, Athrun Zala did something to sabotage his plans. Which at this point in time, seemed very likely.

Kira realized, as he strolled down the street at a steady pace, hands jammed deep into his pockets, that he had miscalculated. He had thought that the news report was a salvageable mistake, but no. Someone had turned up and offered Athrun Zala a clue on a silver platter, and he hadn't expected that person to be Flay Allster. In fact, it hadn't even crossed his mind that someone would respond to the news report. As far as he knew, Kira was 'invisible' – no one knew him, no one cared. There was nothing to his name, which meant that there was nothing that could trace back to him. He was unknown to the rest of the world. He was always moving in the shadows. He belonged to a completely separate world. That was him; that was how he led his life.

At least that was what he thought.

Kira hastened his pace. The neighbourhood was waking up. The previously empty street he had seen when he stepped into the phone booth and talked to Yuna Roma Seiran was not so empty anymore. People were opening up shop; passers-by were streaming out onto the sidewalk, some taking a morning stroll, some hurrying off to work. In these not-so-good circumstances, it was better if he limited his exposure, so he tucked his chin in and moved quickly, cutting through the increasing stream of people on the streets.

He was an avenue away from the vacant industrial warehouses, and could already see the top of the rusted fence bordering the area over the roofs of the dusty shops on his right, when he sensed someone fall in behind him. He kept walking, footsteps even on the concrete pavement, and the stranger stayed with him, always two steps behind. So Kira chose the nearest grocery store that was already open for business and stepped into it. _After all, his team needed breakfast. _

The wrinkled old man behind the cashier glanced up at Kira with a bored and uninterested expression when he entered, then turned back to the newspapers sprawled out in front of him. Kira mingled among the shelves, moving from one aisle to another, amethyst eyes running over the assortment of products, ears straining to hear the familiar footfall of his new companion. The man hadn't followed him into the shop. Which was fine by Kira – it gave him some time to get breakfast, before having to deal with his new 'friend'.

So Kira picked out a loaf of bread, some sandwiches and a five-gallon bottle of water and returned to the counter. He waited as the old man took his time to fold his newspapers. "Thirty bucks," the old man drawled out eventually, with a smug tweak at the corner of his lips. Kira understood – none of the shops in the neighbourhood played nice. None of the prices in the stores were fixed. Depending on who entered the shop, prices could be exorbitant, and there was nothing you could do about it, because most of these shopkeepers kept guns under their cashiers. If you played dirty, these shopkeepers played dirtier.

Kira smiled and reached into his pocket. He pulled out a wad of crumpled bills and peeled off a fifty. "Tell you what," he said, tipping the bill towards the old man, "I'll let you keep the change, if you'll let me use your backdoor."

The old man stared at the creased bill, then raised his eyes to Kira's face. He glanced over at the front entrance and grinned. "Hiding from someone, son?"

Kira just smiled.

"Alright," the old man nodded. He took the bill and dumped it into a drawer, then packed Kira's groceries into a plastic bag and led him towards the backdoor of the shop. Kira ducked through the doorway and found himself in a narrow side alley between the grocery store and a hardware shop. He inched his way towards the main street, back against the brick wall, and found the person he was looking for. The man who was tailing him was standing in front of the grocery store, eyes fixed on the entrance. His back was towards the side alley and Kira couldn't see his face. But then again, he didn't need to – the man was soon to be dead and corpses didn't look pretty lying in alleyways.

Kira left his bag of groceries in the alley and strolled out onto the main street, right hand dipping into the inner pocket of his jacket. Two feet away from the man, he pulled out his gun and pressed the barrel of the silencer into the man's back. He closed up the rest of the distance, until the butt of his gun was flushed against his own stomach and threw his left arm over the other man's shoulder, as if they were buddies.

The man froze.

"Move, and I guarantee that you'll be lying in a bed for the rest of your life," Kira said into the man's ear, jamming the gun barrel into the man's spine for emphasis. "That is, if the doctors can put your spinal cord back together."

"Don't shoot!" the man gasped. He moved his hands, lifting them away from his body to show that he was unarmed, but not high enough to attract the attention of the pedestrians strolling around them. Kira took them as some sign of cooperation. He tugged the man against him and hauled him into the alleyway, back into the shadows. "Give me a reason why I shouldn't."

The man reached a hand into his pocket, and Kira shoved the gun barrel hard into the man's spine. The man groaned and stopped in his movements. "Rau sent me," the man whispered, voice thick with pain.

Kira paused. _This was unusual._ Rau's men always found ingenious ways of getting orders and messages to him, none of which involved a man tailing him. Kira knocked back the safety catch and poised his finger over the trigger. He had a silencer screwed to his gun; this wouldn't take long, and wouldn't draw anyone's attention.

"No, I'm telling the truth," the man said quickly, "Rau sent me to give you a message. He said it's important. That's why I came personally. He knows that Athrun Zala's been to your apartment."

The last sentence made Kira stop, and the man took advantage of it, digging quickly into his pocket and pulling out a folded envelope before Kira could change his mind. And when Kira saw the insignia on the envelope, Kira let the gun fall to his side, for he recognized it instantly and knew the man was telling the truth. He received it in his left hand and watched as the man scurried out of the alley, narrowly colliding with a couple that happened to be strolling by.

Now alone, Kira pocketed his weapon and slid a nail through the fold of the envelope. It was glued shut and it took a little while for Kira to work it open. Inside was a sheet of card stock, and on the back was a single line written in Rau's handwriting.

_Get rid of all the evidence before Athrun Zala gets there, and that includes eliminating Lacus Clyne._

* * *

Athrun's phone began to buzz as soon as they stepped out of the greasy spoon. He fished it out of his pocket and held it to his ear, "Zala speaking."

Meyrin's voice transmitted into his ear and said, "Chief, I've managed to track down the owner of the apartment as requested." Athrun lifted the cell from his ear and switched it to speaker mode so that Cagalli could hear the message too. "It belongs to a man named Brad Harvey."

"And who is he?"

"I'm thinking you won't be surprised by what I'm about to say. He's an employee of STAN Labs. And after some really intensive trawling through the system, we found out that it's part of DEX Enterprises' property."

"Right," Athrun said, glancing at Cagalli, who was staring at him wide-eyed. "Thank you very much, Meyrin. I'll appreciate it if you could send Mr. Harvey's particulars. And how are things on Seiran's side? Have Nicol and Dearka checked in?"

"Nicol called in about ten minutes ago. He said that Dearka is still playing Seiran, but Seiran doesn't seem to be taking it very well."

"Okay," Athrun said, "what about Miriallia? Any news about the DNA profile?"

There was a clatter on the other end of the phone and Miriallia came onto the line. "I'm right here," she said, "and no, the test is still running. This isn't fast food, Athrun, you need to give it time."

"Right," Athrun said again, "but in case you haven't noticed, time isn't exactly on our side right now."

* * *

Nicol had just hung up from the call with Meyrin when he heard shouting from the Clyne Mansion study. He ran across the hallway and into the room and found Dearka and Seiran in the midst of a struggle.

"What in the world's going on?" He insinuated himself between the two squabbling man to break up the fight. Behind them, Siegel Clyne looked helpless and distressed.

"I told you to call Detective Joule, but you didn't!" Seiran yelled, which was almost a shriek. He pointed a trembling finger at Dearka. "I talked to my subordinate at the safehouse. He told me that no one called up, and Detective Joule's been in the safehouse all morning!"

Nicol shot Dearka an alarmed glance but Dearka ignored it. "With all due respect, _sir_," he spat out, "withdrawing the team is exactly what the kidnappers want. Next minute, they're going to storm the safehouse and take the serum and there won't be a single soul to stop them."

Seiran drew himself up, chest out and shoulders pushed back in a defiant posture. "I'm not stupid," he declared. "Of course I know the kidnappers are going to head for the safehouse. I didn't say leave the serum behind. Ask the team to take it with them when they withdraw. And when the fools break in, we'll just turn back and round them up."

"Oh come on," Dearka breathed out, "you don't think the kidnappers are amateurs, do you? They're not going down so easily. And besides, how does that ensure Lacus' safety? The kidnappers' request is utterly unreasonable. It's obvious that if we concede to their request, we're never getting Lacus back."

"_He _said we'll see Lacus after we withdraw the men."

"Right, and kidnappers are honourable people who keep their promises," Dearka snarled.

Seiran looked as if he had been slapped. His face reddened with anger, his eyes livid. The next moment, he dove for his jacket, which was slung over the armrest of the couch and snatched for his phone. Before Nicol and Dearka could stop him, he had dialed the number to Yzak Joule's line and Yzak picked up after a single ring.

"This is Yuna Roma Seiran, chief of this operation. New orders have been passed down. You are to withdraw all the men from the safehouse and take the serum with you immediately."

Dearka wrestled the phone from his hand, but it was already too late.

Miles away, the elevator doors grated open and Kira lunged onto the fourth level of the warehouse, the card stock imprinted with Rau's message clenched tight in his hand. He couldn't believe what he had just read – killing Lacus Clyne had never been part of the plan. His mind was racing. For once, he felt confusion cloud his judgment. For once, he felt the orders he had been given were wrong. But before he could even work out the flashing thoughts in his mind, the devices Sting had hooked up began to beep earnestly and lit up the gloom in harsh white light.

"Seiran's phone has connected with Yzak Joule's," Sting said, swinging around in his chair to check the computer screens. "We've got a lead on Yzak Joule's location."

_Author's note: So what do you think? Things are getting exciting now and I'm working up to the meeting between Athrun and Kira, so stay with me guys! I feel as if the characters are becoming way too OOC. What do you think? Am I deviating too far from the original characters? Hmmm… I hesitated a little about Kira's encounter with the man, because it's so unlike him. But then again, if I wanted Kira to be a ruthless killer in this AU, I can't have him all nice and gentle… hmm… And Dearka's being so… outspoken… Oh boy… Please do review and let me know what you think about the characters. If it's getting a little out of hand, it'll be nice if you guys remind me and drag me back into the universe of GS and GSD before I spoil these beloved characters! So what can I say but review, review review! _


	50. 49

_Author's note: Hey there! Here's the next chappie. And of course, before we begin, just wanted to say again, a BIG BIG thank you to all my readers. _

_FTS-Peace: I believe the next few chapters will continue to be intense since we're working up to the final meeting! I am sooo looking forward to that chapter too. Just hope it won't be a letdown when I start writing it._

_Ragingwing004: Hello, nice to hear from you. Do hope I can keep updating quickly these few days. Heh, I actually feel sorry for Seiran. I am doing such terrible things to him in this fanfic. And for Rau, I haven't quite got there yet, but I'm pretty sure that there will be a suitable ending for him. :)_

_hardcoreGSfan: Thanks so much for commenting on the OOCness of the characters. You've set my mind at ease with your comment. I was getting a worried about that. Hopefully, when the dust settles, all the characters will resume most of their 'normal' personality. I feel sad that kira can't be gentle and all as an assassin :(. _

_Seiba Artoria: I am hoping that I can churn out more chapters these few days. Since it's so exciting and intense, it's difficult to pause for a while and get back to the intensity, so I'm going to keep the writing up! Heh, you might hate me because of the cliffhanger at the end of this chappie, but I assure you that the next chapter will show what Kira will do about Lacus!_

_animedoshia: Don't hate me because of the cliffhanger at the end of this chappie! I'm working on the Kira and Lacus scene, so it'll be coming in next chapter!_

_PinkSugar Dust: I'm glad the characters aren't too OOC. I was getting worried about that! So thank you for the reassurance. Meanwhile, the reunion between Kira and Athrun should be coming up soon!_

_AAA: Yup, things are indeed getting messy! And they can only get messier! :D_

**Chapter 49:**

Athrun glared at the pulsing red digits at the top of the elevator and willed the lift to go faster. Finally, it glided to a smooth halt on the sixteenth floor. The doors had barely parted when he barreled through them and lunged through the empty department, heading straight for the conference room. Behind him, he heard Cagalli's anxious footfall as she scrambled to catch up with him. "Athrun, hang on-" she called out but he ignored her.

The door of the conference room banged open and rattled dangerously in its wooden frame. Half a dozen faces spun round and stared at him, but Athrun only had eyes for one person. And he found _that_ person standing at the head of the conference table. Yuna Roma Seiran's eyes were staring at him so wide that they were bulging out of his head, and Athrun would have liked to punch them back in. The purple-haired detective was frozen in place, right hand poised in midair in an attempt to hand a file to Meyrin. Athrun rounded the table in purposeful strides, glancing at the file as he passed with furious emerald eyes.

The words "Approval for Team Withdrawal" screamed back at him from the white sheet of paper tucked neatly into the file.

_Goddamn it, the fucking asshole was serious about it. _When Athrun had first heard the news from Dearka on the way to DEX enterprises, he had thought Seiran was joking. But then, he had thought twice, and figured that Seiran was indeed capable of such foolishness. He had jammed to a halt right in the middle of the highway and spun his wheel, sending the convertible into a wide u-turn, and took off in the opposite direction at a breakneck speed, which had Cagalli thrown back into her seat, gripping her seatbelt for dear life.

Now, standing in front of Seiran, he wanted nothing more than to throttle the man. "Are you out of your mind?" He bellowed into Seiran's face. "You're conceding to the kidnapper's demands? That's insane. That's stupid. You can't withdraw the team from the safehouse!"

Seiran snapped back to his senses and plastered a nasty scowl across his face. "And what law says I can't do that?" He rebutted, "We're close to nabbing these criminals. It's a _perfect_ plan. We'll fool them into thinking that we've withdrawn, but in fact we're taking the serum with us. When those idiots turn up at the house, they'll find nothing, and we'll turn back and round them all up like sheep, then force them to tell us where Lacus Clyne is hidden."

Athrun threw his hands up in despair. "These people don't play by the rules. You think they will fall for this foolish trick and then return Lacus to us in one piece?"

"I know what I'm doing!" Seiran retorted. He tossed the file he had been holding carelessly in Meyrin's direction and pointed a finger at her, "Do as I said and send out the orders to the men." Then without a backward glance, he turned on his heel and headed for the door.

But he didn't make it to the exit because his collar was seized in two rough hands and he was slammed into the wall. "Listen to me, you asshole," Athrun snarled, his face pushed up to Seiran's. "You don't know what you're dealing with. You're putting Lacus in danger. Once these people get their hands on the real serum, they'll have no qualms about killing her." He glowered down at Seiran, emerald eyes seething with fury, fists full of the man's jacket, trembling from the effort not to sink his fist into the arrogant bastard's face.

Alarmed by the white-hot anger he saw in those eyes, Seiran tried to shove him back but Athrun clung on. "Let go, you bastard," Seiran demanded, struggling to free himself from the vice-like grip. There was a hint of fear in his voice and Athrun relished it with a certain degree of delight. "I said get off!" Seiran spat, his voice taking on a desperate pitch. Athrun caught the detective glancing frantically over his shoulder, no doubt looking for assistance but no one in the conference room appeared to be concerned that their new chief was plastered against the wall.

"Will someone explain to me what is going on here?"

Athrun whirled around and stared into the stern eyes of Assistant Commissioner Ramius.

Murrue was standing in the doorway, a hand poised over the doorknob. "Anyone wants to tell me how the conference room became a boxing ring?" She repeated, expression hardening at the sight of the two agents locked in combat. "Detective Zala?" She raised her eyebrows questioningly, "Do _you_ want to give me a valid explanation?"

Athrun didn't reply. He merely released his hold on his victim, giving the man one last hard shove back into the wall and backed away from Seiran, who straightened up and made a show of dusting his jacket.

"Are you alright, Detective Seiran?" Murrue tilted her head in his direction. Her voice was ice-cold and sarcastic.

Seiran adjusted his tie and gave her a sweet smile, "Yes, Ma'am. I'm absolutely fine." Athrun shot him a look of pure hatred. _He __would do anything to__ wipe the __smirk__ off __Seiran's__ face._

"Okay," Murrue nodded. "I want to see you in my office, Detective Seiran." Then she gave Athrun a long hard look and turned away, disappearing down the corridor.

"Well, well, well," Seiran sighed. He shook his head and stepped towards the door, giving Athrun a rough shove in the shoulder as he passed. He paused in the doorway and glanced behind him, his lips curling cruelly. "You were nearly in trouble again, Zala," he tsked. He cast Athrun a look of pity and shook his head again. "If I were you, I would keep my head down and mind my own business. Don't you have other cases on hand?" Then his eyes widened and he gave a loud exaggerated laugh, "Oh right! How forgetful of me! You don't have any cases on hand, do you, Zala?" A malicious grin twisted his mouth. "I nearly forgot that you've been suspended! There goes your promotion, Athrun, your career has effectively come to a standstill. Oh, and so what if I put your dear Lacus in danger, what are you gonna do? Was that your worst, Athrun Zala? I'm wai-"

Yuna Roma Seiran never finished his sentence because he fell to the ground, blood spilling from his broken nose. "You crazy bastard," he howled, trying to staunch the flow of blood with his hands. He scrambled backwards frantically as Athrun started towards him, fists cocked. His expression was murderous and his emerald eyes flashed with malice and fury. His advance was blocked by Nicol who insinuated himself between them. "Don't do it, Athrun," Nicol shook his head, placing a restraining hand on his chest. Athrun ignored him but an arm was thrown around his torso, pulling him back. "Don't make things worse than they already are," Dearka whispered harshly in his ear. "Seiran's not worth it." Turning to the fallen agent, Dearka barked out quickly, "Shouldn't you get a move on to AC Ramius' office, Detective Seiran?"

Seiran scrambled to his feet, hands still cradling his broken nose. "You bastard," he hissed, "I'll get back for this. If you've got guts, Zala, you'll stay here while I get AC Ramius. She'll fix you. She'll make sure you leave the Special Unit permanently and I'm going to the Commissioner too. My uncle will end your career effectively. You can forget about being a detective ever again. In fact, you can expect to hear from my lawyer. I'm pretty sure you'll get a couple of months in jail at least, for assaulting the nephew of the Police Commissioner." He scrambled to his feet and bolted out of the conference room as Athrun broke free from Nicol and Dearka's grasp, snatching the file out of Meyrin's hands as he fled.

Shinn and Dearka caught Athrun before he could make it out of the conference room after Seiran. "Let go of me!" Athrun snarled, but Lunamaria just shut the door with a loud, decisive click, and Athrun sagged back against his teammates, feeling, suddenly, all out of strength.

"You need to get out of here, Boss," Dearka said, "before the Commissioner gets here."

Athrun wrestled out of his grasp. "Lacus is in danger. If you think I'm going to sit back and let Seiran do what he wants, you can forget it."

"But you can't stay here either, Chief. Seiran's not making empty threats. If you want to save Lacus, you need to get out of here and stay out of jail. So let us handle things in the department," Nicol paused, then added thoughtfully, "Meanwhile, it might be better if you do some damage control under the radar."

Athrun stared at him. Then at the rest of his team. Heads were bobbing subconsciously, grim and resigned expressions looking back at him. He knew what Nicol was suggesting but he couldn't quite believe that the rest of his team would support his proposition. _Working under the radar meant doing things that police officers could not because of red tape, or bureaucracy, or assholes like Seiran. It meant completely turning his back on all of police protocol – like picking the lock of someone's apartment and entering without a search warrant. _Athrun had done it, but he hadn't told anyone in the team, because he didn't want to get them into trouble. But now, he was surprised to see them encouraging him to break the rules.

Nicol turned to Cagalli, who was shifting from one foot to another, looking a little uneasy at the conflict. "We're depending on you to get the chief out of here."

Cagalli nodded. Stepping forward, she snagged Athrun's wrist, and pulled the blue-haired detective after her, stepping briskly through the empty floor and heading straight for the lift. Athrun followed reluctantly, hanging behind, still absorbed in the perplexing turn of events. "You'll keep me in the loop?" He turned around and called out to the rest of his team, who were crowded in the doorway of the conference room, watching.

"Yes, sir," Nicol smiled. Then as the lift doors pinged open and Cagalli bundled Athrun into the steel cage without a second glance, added quietly so that only the rest of the team could hear, "Good luck, Chief."

* * *

Kira stared down at the map that was sprawled out across the desk, but he was barely registering it. In his mind's eye, he could still see the familiar scrawl emblazed across the sheet of white card, as if it were written in scarlet-red blood.

_Get rid of all the evidence before Athrun Zala gets there, and that includes eliminating Lacus Clyne. _

He crossed his arms over his chest and felt the weight of the gun in his inner jacket pocket pressing against his chest, like a lead weight suffocating him. He imagined putting the cold metal barrel against the back of Lacus Clyne's head, watching as the mess of pale pink strands wove over the gun barrel, then become stained with warm, red blood. He would then have Sting and Auel put her in the trunk of the blue sedan and drive her to the cliff at the outskirts of town, where they would toss her limp body off the rocky edge. She would fall like a weightless rag doll, pink hair streaming out, limbs flailing lifelessly until she hit the sharp rocks that jutted out of the churning, bubbling rush of waves. Many of Rau's targeted victims had gone down the edge of the cliff like that, and Kira had arranged for most of them. That part of the ocean had the fastest whirling waves, which eliminated all traces of evidence that might have been left behind, as well as all traces of the victims' existence.

Since Rau desired it, Lacus Clyne would soon be one of them.

When Kira unfolded his arms, he realized that he had cut shallow, crescent-like marks into the skin of his upper arms, the part between elbow and shoulder, with his own fingernails. He cursed, more from annoyance and restlessness than pain, and unrolled his jacket sleeves to his elbows.

He pulled the white cardstock from his jacket pocket and stared at it again. For a while, he hoped that he had misread, or misunderstood Rau's instructions, but the same words stared back at him. And he recalled the man's message: _"He knows that Athrun Zala's been to your apartment."_

Kira wasn't surprised. Rau knew everything; he was omniscient. His spies were everywhere, serving as his eyes. Kira knew his own apartment had to be rigged somehow. Pinhole cameras, hidden transmitters. Heck, he was pretty sure that the housekeeper that came round to clean up his house was a spy. After all, if you were Rau's agent, you were never alone. Not for a single second. So Rau knew that Athrun Zala had uncovered another one of his dirty secrets, latching on fast and quick to any clue tossed his way. Because of that, the detective had slipped into Rau's radar. Yet, Rau hadn't shown any intentions to get rid of Athrun – his instructions thus far, hadn't asked for Athrun's destruction. Which could only mean that Rau was interested - amused even - by the detective.

Kira knew Athrun Zala was the kind of man that delighted Rau Le Creuset.

But even then, Rau Le Creuset was not a man to be trifled with. When someone pissed him off, he didn't just let it go. He punished all who dared to oppose him, even if it meant the whole world. So killing Lacus was only the first of Athrun Zala's punishments. To destroy the very thing he was looking for, and render his entire quest hollow and purposeless. It was Rau's warning to Athrun Zala, a warning that he couldn't win. His crime? Poking his meddlesome little detective nose into places he shouldn't have.

For a second, Kira wondered if this was Rau's warning to himself too. There had been no reproach for his mistake, for having revealed his name to someone else. But Kira had no doubt that Rau was aware of it. If Rau knew that it was to Lacus Clyne that he had revealed his name, then asking him to kill Lacus was a warning and a test. If Rau didn't know, then his punishment would just come later.

Kira was stunned out of his thoughts by the creaking of the door's hinges. He turned around to face the intruder, slipping the white cardstock back into his pocket in a subtle move. Stellar was in the doorway, a hand resting on the doorknob, watching him through wide eyes. "I'm sorry for the disturbance," she murmured, "I know you wanted some privacy. It's just that… it's 8 a.m. We were wondering if you've got instructions for us." She lapsed back into an uncomfortable silence.

He broke the eye contact between them and turned back to the map of the city. There, in the left-most corner, was an oval drawn in blood-red ink, encircling a rectangle that was shaded in grey. _The safehouse_. Sting had tracked the call from Seiran's phone to Yzak Joule's cell, and found the signal pulsing in the outskirts of the city, in what appeared to be a private property in the midst of a forested area. Seiran's call had ended in less than a minute, but the duration wasn't important. All they needed was a trigger, which Seiran provided the moment he hit the 'call' button with Yzak Joule's number. Things had been smooth-sailing from then on. Kira checked his watch; it was as Stellar had said. Things were going to wrap up in less than four hours. But first, he needed to follow Rau's orders.

He turned back to Stellar. "Pack up. We'll move out in an hour's time." He rolled up the map and handed it to Stellar on his way out of the room.

"Where're you going?"

"I've got some stuff to finish up," he tossed back over his shoulder without a second glance. He passed through the fourth level of the warehouse, headed for the cluster of computers and devices, and blanked the screen that showed the security footage of Lacus Clyne. Then he headed for the lift, and waited for the lift doors to grate to a close behind him before donning his mask and dragging a balaclava across the bottom-half of his face. The lift was made of stainless steel and he could see his own distorted image reflected off the metal all around. _The reflection of a murderer._

Slipping his hand into his inner jacket pocket, he retrieved his gun and flicked the safety off. And felt the lift continue its persistent descent towards the basement, like falling down into the fire pits of Hell, into a fate that neither he, Lacus Clyne nor Athrun Zala could escape from.

_Author's note: Cliffhanger! Okay, some people are going to start hating me now, but I'm working on the next chapter, so it should be up and running real soon! Bear with me, guys! In the meantime, of course, it's like I always say, don't forget to review, review, review! Tell me what do you think Kira is going to do to Lacus…? *smiles innocently*_


	51. 50

_Author's note: There there! Here's the next, long-awaited chappie! I shan't hold you up; read on and enjoy, folks!_

**Chapter 50**

Assistant Commissioner Ramius was annoyed. More than annoyed actually; more like exasperated. She now wished that she hadn't stopped Athrun Zala from strangling Yuna Roma Seiran. If she could, she would have let Athrun kill the man and hide the body. _Asshole, _she thought to herself as Yuna Roma Seiran stood in front of her desk and complained, in no uncertain terms, that Athrun had lost his mind and ought to be put in prison for the rest of his miserable life.

She watched with some amusement as Seiran shoved the wad of tissues farther up his nose, stemming a trickle of blood that had strayed down his upper lip. For a second, Murrue wondered if Athrun Zala had indeed, as Seiran pointed out, lost his mind. She had never seen this side of Athrun. She remembered the surprise when she heard the commotion and pushed open the conference room to see Seiran pinned to the wall by none other than Athrun Zala. Sure, Seiran was the most infuriating person in Headquarters – heck, he was probably the most infuriating person on the planet – but still, Athrun Zala had a very pleasant temper to match. It didn't seem like him to do something so rash and aggressive. _Perhaps,_ she considered, _it was due to the fact that the case was personal._ Athrun Zala had already lost one family. Didn't seem right that he should lose another.

Still, she mused, Athrun hadn't gone completely over the edge. At least he had held back somewhat – Seiran's nose wasn't broken, just banged up a little, even though the moron was screeching in front of her desk as if Athrun had ran over him with a truck.

"Well," Murrue interrupted calmly as Seiran paused from his ranting to draw breath, "you're not dead yet, are you, Detective Seiran?"

The purple-haired man stared at her. "That's because I was lucky!" he exclaimed, gesticulating wildly. "If you hadn't come in, Athrun Zala would have killed me. I swear that murderer needs to be put down! I can build up the case if you like. I've got the Big Three – opportunity, means, motive. That should shut him up for good."

"But if you're not dead, Detective Seiran," Murrue Ramius drawled out, speaking slowly as if to an unreasonable child, "then I suppose, you can't accuse Detective Zala of being a murderer, can you?" She sighed and shook her head, waving him towards the exit of her office. She was done entertaining Seiran. There was a pile of work that needed to be done. "Get back to the Lacus Clyne case, Detective. That's priority #1."

"What?" Seiran stared at her again, slack-jawed. "You're letting Zala off the hook?"

Murrue ignored his last comment. "Get a move on, Detective. This is a high-profile case. The higher-ups are concerned. Your promotion could depend on this case," she said, tone encouraging. _It was like offering a little something something to a child in order to curb his tantrum._ But it worked apparently, because Seiran began to move towards the door, mind already drifting away from the incident.

"Oh," she added, wrinkling her nose a little as Seiran paused in the doorway of her office. "You should change. It's important to look presentable. That's the first lesson in being one of the higher-ups, which you'll probably be if you solve this case. Go on." She plastered a complacent smile on her face. She was being careful when she added the word 'probably'. _Just that little something something to motivate the kid and get him out of her office, but god help them all, Seiran would never get a promotion if she could help it._

Seiran glanced down at his blood-stained shirt, then back at her and grinned, "Right you are, AC Ramius. Great advice. I'll get it to it right away."

The door shut behind him and Murrue sank back into her leather-upholstered chair and heaved a loud sigh. Talking to Seiran had never been easy, but at least, she was glad that she had saved Athrun's ass. The last thing that Athrun needed after all this shit, was police assault charges slapped to his name. She picked up her pen and got back to the report she had been looking at before Seiran burst into her office.

The phone on her desk buzzed and she hit the intercom button without looking up. "Yes?" she said. Her assistant and secretary, Arnold Neumann, replied with "the Commissioner's on the line."

"Okay," said Murrue, "patch him through."

There was a short pause and the Commissioner's voice came through the speakers. "AC Ramius?"

"Yes, it's me, sir."

"I've heard news that Detective Athrun Zala from the Special Unit is in the building. Arrange for your men to arrest him."

Murrue glanced up from her report in a hurry and stared at the phone on her desk, as if it had just come alive. _What in the world had happened? Had Seiran, the asshole, really approached the Commissioner? How had the Commissioner found out about the commotion in the conference room? _Playing down her alarm, she asked, in what she hoped to be a neutral tone, "On what charges, sir?"

"There's been a complaint that Detective Zala broke into an apartment without a search warrant. What sort of behavior is this, Assistant Commissioner? I thought Yuna is now in charge of the Lacus Clyne case and Detective Zala's been temporarily suspended. So why is it that he's been spotted breaking into someone's house in the middle of the night?"

"That's impossible," Murrue frowned, "Detective Zala wouldn't do such a thing. Who is the complainant? Let me send some men to talk to him or her and find out more. It could be a misunderstanding or misidentification. I'm sure-"

"There's no need for that," the Commissioner interrupted her, voice gruff with a no-nonsense vibe about it. "I've had it checked out. It's a reliable witness. All you need to do is get your men down to the Special Unit, have Athrun Zala arrested and press charges. Right now." The line went dead, and Murrue was left sitting ramrod straight in her chair, the incessant beeping of her desk phone threatening to drown out her disbelief. _She had saved Athrun from police assault charges, but how in the world was she going to save him from being charged with breaking-and-entering?_

* * *

She glanced up when he walked in, head jerking upwards in a fluid motion. At first, there was a flare of panic on her face, but it transitioned quickly into relief. As if she was actually glad to see him. Her lips even curled from a faint smile. He shifted his grip on the gun, and tried to steady his hands. _She wouldn't be smiling anymore when she saw what he was about to do._

All that Broadway glitz and glamour had faded. Lacus Clyne's luscious pink hair was now dull and caked with dirt, trailing limply over her shoulders. Her dress was grey from the dust and its torn sleeve hung loosely off her shoulder. His jacket lay skewed over her torso and her legs were tucked in close to her chest. Makeup was smudged across her face, lines of pale skin ran down the sides of her face, where sweat had trickled down and washed away the rouge and powder. She looked nothing like the alluring Broadway singer on the three-storey length publicity poster hanging outside the National Theatre.

Yet, underneath the ragged appearance, Kira noticed something else. Something he couldn't quite describe, or identify.

Was it defiance? Not really. She didn't have a smug grin on her face; she didn't have her chin held high. There was no sparkle of pride in her blue-grey eyes. So no, it wasn't defiance. Was it confidence? Confidence in what? In Athrun Zala rescuing her? Or courage? Like facing death without blinking an eye? No, no. It was more than that. Much more than that. Sure, she was displaying confidence, but so had many of Kira's victims. But all of them had still shied away when he approached. Because even though they were confident that they would be saved, they still detested his presence; couldn't stand him being near. But Lacus Clyne wasn't shying away from him. As for courage, Lacus Clyne didn't look like she was ready to die either, so she wasn't staring at death bravely. There was something more.

The woman looked as if she genuinely felt happy that Kira had walked through those doors. Which hardly made any sense.

And then he realized that it wasn't defiance, or confidence, or courage. He had seen that gaze before, in his teammates' eyes whenever they were on a mission. It was trust, but Lacus' gaze was more than that. Hers was a kind of trust subsumed with innocence. Like she truly believed that he wouldn't hurt her. That he would, in fact, protect her from harm.

Trust.

Lacus Clyne actually trusted him.

And he broke all that trust when he raised his gun and pointed it straight at Lacus Clyne.

* * *

Cagalli figured that driving seventy miles per hour on a somewhat busy road had to be considered dangerous.

Driving at that speed and talking into the phone was equivalent to suicide. But she kept her mouth shut as Athrun did just that.

Actually, he wasn't really _talking_. It was more like yelling, and Yzak Joule didn't sound very pleased on the other end of the phone either.

"Stay put," Athrun snapped. "Don't take a single step out of the safehouse, Yzak."

"The order's come down. I can't ignore it." Yzak sounded more harassed than ever.

"It's Seiran, for goddamn's sake," Athrun responded. He spun the wheel and cut into a side road. Cagalli swayed left, clinging to her seat for life. "None of the moron's orders can be trusted!"

"Who said anything about Seiran's orders?" Yzak said, "I'm talking about the Commissioner."

"What?" Another spin of the wheel and Cagalli swayed right.

"I said, the Commissioner's ordered the team to withdraw. Seiran must have gone up to the Commissioner. He's approved Seiran's orders. We can't ignore it now."

Athrun fell silent, but Cagalli could sense the waves of tension roll off him. Yzak waited for a moment, and when his chief didn't reply, he continued, "the team's packing up now. In one and a half hours, we're supposed to withdraw to a five-mile radius around the safehouse, and we've been ordered to take the serum with us." He paused, expecting an answer from Athrun.

"I'll be there," Athrun snapped, and hung up abruptly. "Damn Seiran," he snarled to himself.

* * *

Lacus stared at the gun, eyes wide and horrified. She stared for as long as she dared, then let her gaze drift over the deft fingers, up the lean muscled arm, to the impassive face looking back at her from behind the mask. Her mind had gone blank. She couldn't think. All the hopes she had had of rationalizing her way out of her predicament vanished in a split second. She couldn't understand what they wanted, why they had taken her or why they were going to kill her now. _Had it been the serum that Athrun had talked about – the one that her father's corporation was developing? What was so tantalizing about the serum? Why commit so many crimes just for that single vial of drugs? Had the kidnappers got their hands on it already? Was that why they were going to kill her? Where was Athrun?_ _Could he be right outside the building? Waiting to ambush the kidnappers? Or was it far away, still scouting for clues as to where she was being held? _

More importantly, she couldn't understand… why the man who had given her food and water, who had looked at her not as a tool to achieve his aim but as a person, who had lent her his jacket for warmth, who had protected her from his comrade's rampage… would want to kill her now? She couldn't understand, why _Kira _was the one who wanted to kill her?

She stared up at him, searching the hidden face for some inkling of the answers to her questions, but found nothing. The man's eyes were hidden from view behind tinted glass and the lower half of his face by a black cloth. _Maybe she had got it all wrong… Maybe this wasn't Kira. Or perhaps, it was another Kira, a different Kira. The Kira she had known, and lost, was still missing and he wasn't coming back anytime soon. This wasn't Kira. This was a cold-blooded murderer, who had admitted that he got kicks out of killing people. _Tears welled in her eyes and blurred her vision. The image of the man before her wavered and distorted, until it became simply a watery impression.

Kira saw the tears stream down her face, and shocked himself by feeling an unfamiliar urge to sink to his knees in front of her and wipe them away. He touched the pad of his index finger to the trigger and pressed ever so slightly, feeling the fleshy pad of his finger compress. But the pressure wasn't enough to move the trigger. A little bit more, and…

It wouldn't even be a loud bang. Because they couldn't afford to have curious passers-by alarmed by a gunshot coming from the industrial site. So he had his silencer screwed on.

It would just be a pop. Quick and efficient.

Like always.

Usually, he would aim his muzzle at the spot between his victim's eyes. It was an easy and convenient target and it guaranteed that the victim wasn't going to stand up any time soon. But this time, he shifted the gun, lining the muzzle up with Lacus Clyne's forehead. The bullet would hit her in the middle of the brow, push through the soft folds of the brain inside her skull and out through the back of her head. More importantly, with his gun raised a little higher than usual, he wouldn't be able to see her eyes, or the fear in them.

But as he moved the weapon into position, he realized he couldn't quite fix it on his target.

Because his hand was fucking trembling.

The trembling wasn't very obvious. After all, he had had intensive training. It had been beaten into him, both literally and figuratively, that he should never falter when his gun was whipped out and his finger was hovering over the trigger. So under the unpracticed eye, his right hand still appeared rock solid and trained on Lacus Clyne's brow. But Kira himself noticed the very slight tremors in his fingers.

He tightened his grip on the gun and tried to ignore the fact that his fingers and palm felt clammy and wet. All of a sudden, he felt suffocated under the mask and the balaclava, as if the cotton had suddenly become impermeable. _Steady_, _idiot._ He wanted to shut his eyes and clear his head, but one of the first rules that he had learned back in the facility was never to take your eyes off the enemy, or the target. So he ended up blinking away sweat that was dripping off his forehead in rivulets.

_Just a little more pressure_, _and it would all be over. _

_Just a double tap. Bang, bang. And it would all be over. _

He felt the tension in his forearm, the familiar tightening of his muscles in preparation for the kill. But what wasn't so familiar, was the tightening in his chest. A deep ache was racking up his insides, like someone had reached into his chest and closed icy-cold fingers around his thumping heart and squeezed. Hard. _It didn't make sense. He had killed women in cold blood before, without a single second of hesitation. _He couldn't understand what was stopping him now. The fingers around his heart closed tight and his felt his right hand shift, the gun's muzzle going off target.

_No! _

He could see Lacus Clyne's eyes again. Blue-grey eyes that reflected a wild terror and bewilderment. He wondered if he had a similar horrified expression on his face. Her lips parted and she said something but he couldn't hear. His heart was pounding so hard that all he could hear was the rush of blood in his ears. Then, "Please, Kira."

He froze, heart caught in the vice-like grip of the icy-cold fingers. Throat parched and dry. There was a desperate plea in her voice, and it seemed to fuel the ache in his chest. Sweat poured down his face, stinging his eyes. He needed to get out. He couldn't stand being in her presence, couldn't stand being subjected to that frantic, yet hopeful, gaze. He couldn't pull the trigger. He couldn't…

He turned and ran, crashing into the wooden door behind him. He fumbled for the doorknob, but it wouldn't open. Frustrated, he wrenched hard at it and finally felt the brass knob give. Hauling the door open, he slammed it shut behind him and just ran. Down the corridor and into the steel cage of a lift. The doors groaned to a shut behind him and Kira sank down onto the steel floor, feeling the rough corrugations under his knees. He tore at the balaclava and ripped off the mask until he was free, watching as droplets of sweat fell and made perfect circles on the dusty floor. His gun clattered to the ground and lay untended.

For the _first_ time in his goddamn life, Kira had disobeyed his master's orders.

_Author's note: Whew! What d'ya think about this chappie? I hope it's good, or at least not below your expectations? But I wonder what Kira's going to do now about Lacus? There will be swift retribution from Rau, I tell you! I think I'm such a sadistic person – who in the right mind would torture Kira like that? And of course, Athrun's running into quite a lot of trouble now, with Seiran, and the law! Anyways, if all goes well, I believe Athrun, Cagalli and Kira will meet in the next chapter… Hmm… I'm working on that. So, don't forget to review x3 and tell me what you think's going to happen next! And of course, to my readers:_

_Cheeseries: I hope this chapter makes up for the cliffie in the previous chappie! I'm always glad to hear from you. It hadn't occurred to me that it's been months already until you reminded me about it! Sheesh, this story is taking way too long! :D_

_Seiba Artoria: I think I should have uploaded faster… If I can get things to work out right, I believe Athrun and Kira will be meeting soon in the next chapter, or perhaps the next next. But real real soon!_

_Ragingwing004: Well, Kira does crack indeed! But now I feel like I'm really sadistic for making him suffer emotionally like that. Hmm…_

_hardcoreGSfan: Sooo, is this chapter as exciting as the previous? :D I'm always so happy to hear from you. Your excitement makes me feel excited too! :D_

_AAA: hahahaha. I'm sorry about the cliffhanger! But I do think I'm pure evil because of the way I'm torturing poor Kira!_

_Moi: Well, I do have plans for some kind of a 'run-away' eventually. But I'm working on it :) Hopefully, it'll be as you said, convincing! I'm also trying to work out the meeting between Cagalli and Kira. It might come together with the meeting between Athrun and Kira since Cagalli is tagging along with Athrun, but we'll see…I've really got to think about that…_


	52. 51

_Author's note: Here's the next chappie, everyone! Apologies for the delay. I've been thinking long and hard about this chapter, because we're working up to the climax and I really, really do not want to ruin this. Okay, first, I know everyone's going to be disappointed because I haven't been able to squeeze the Kira-Athrun-meeting into this chappie, but I assure you, now that I've worked this thing out, the next chappie is sure to feature it! So keep a look out, guys! Meantime, I won't hold you back, I've gotta go and work on the next chappie and the long-awaited meeting! So read on and enjoy!_

**Chapter 51:**

It seemed as if they were just in time when Athrun pulled to an abrupt stop in front of the safehouse, the gravel spitting from under their screeching tires. Athrun jammed the gearshift to 'park' and got out, leaving the engine to idle. Cagalli hopped out on the other side.

The safehouse was a medium sized, single-storey residence, sitting in the middle of acres of private land thick with vegetation and trees – a house in the middle of the woods. The good thing about it was that the forested area provided cover for the safehouse; few people knew of its existence because unless you were in a helicopter, you couldn't see it. The lushness of the forest also gave the cops cover because no one could fire a long-distance rifle at the safehouse. Not with all those tree trunks standing in the way like obstacles.

But, the bad thing was that the lushness provided cover for the enemies too – the long shadows amongst the trees could hide a dozen people and you wouldn't be able to see them.

So Athrun was careful. He glanced around at his surroundings first, right hand inside his jacket pocket, caressing the grip of his gun just in case he had to whip it out. Right, left, up and down. But he saw no movement among the trees. Deciding it was safe to turn his back, he returned his attention to the safehouse itself. The house looked plain and simple, with smooth grey and white-painted walls. But the simplicity gave it elegance and class. It had the look of a summer-vacation home for the rich, especially with the grand-looking porch that led out onto an expansive gravel driveway, which was now crammed full of black and blue automobiles, their trunks popped open. Agents, detectives and uniformed officers were streaming in and out of the house, lugging heavy surveillance equipment up and down the drive. Standing on the porch, by the door, watching the comings and goings of the personnel, was Yzak Joule.

With Cagalli beside him, Athrun wove his way through the crowd and headed straight for the silver-haired man. "We're almost done here," Yzak said as they drew up beside him. He checked his watch. "We've got another 45 minutes. Seiran's on his way. Dearka told me what happened on the phone. You need to get out before Seiran gets here. Pulling that stunt on Seiran was downright stupid and only someone like you would do it." He cast a look of distaste at his boss, but Athrun ignored the insult - and the proposition.

"The serum?" he asked.

Yzak raised a silver briefcase in response.

"And Seiran's plan?" He gave a questioning nod towards the mass thronging the gravel driveway.

"We're pulling out at 10 a.m. Precisely. All agents and officers. No one left in the safehouse, and the serum's going with us. We're banking over there," Yzak turned and pointed down the open driveway, "Five miles from here, there's a raised hill that oversees the safehouse. We've got motion sensors installed inside the house. The moment they break in, we'll come back down here and round them up." He shook his head and glared at Athrun and Cagalli, as if they had been the ones who had come up with the plan. "This is what an idiot would come up with."

Athrun said nothing, but he agreed. _Seiran was a fool to think that he could outsmart those criminals. So much could go wrong with a plan like that, and there was no guarantee that they could keep Lacus safe or discover her whereabouts. _But Athrun was more certain that the plan would fail because the people they were dealing with were devils.

And everyone knew devils didn't play by the rules.

* * *

The terrain surrounding the safehouse was rough and uneven. The house itself rested in the heart of a shallow valley, its sloping sides covered in thick forest, raised mounds and hills. It was atop one of these dirt mounds that Kira was crouched, hidden from view.

He eased himself down onto his belly – the forest floor felt cool and damp underneath his clothes – and crept towards the edge of his hiding place, peering downwards. The safehouse was splayed out in front, seventy feet below and sixty ahead. He was positioned to its right and he had a glimpse of the side of the house and the gravel driveway in front of it, which, at that point in time, was obscured from view by four dark-coloured automobiles.

And a black convertible.

Kira lifted the binoculars and scoured the driveway through the lenses. There were about twenty agents or so, trooping all over the drive, hauling large briefcases and boxes from the house and cramming them into the trunks of the vehicles. _Seiran's plans were in motion then, _he thought to himself as he scanned the crowd, searching for the familiar mop of navy blue hair. He found it on the porch. Detective Athrun Zala had arrived on the scene and he was talking to a silver-haired agent whom Kira recognized to be Yzak Joule from the files in Sting's laptop.

In Yzak Joule's right hand, was a silver briefcase which the man raised in response to what Athrun Zala said.

_The serum._

It was as Kira had suspected - Yuna Roma Seiran was setting a trap for them. On the surface, it appeared as if Seiran had been frightened enough to withdraw the team from the safehouse, but Kira knew a proud man like Seiran wouldn't back down. People like Seiran thought they were the genius, and that the rest of the world was made up of fools. Kira smiled, _that would be Seiran's fatal flaw. _He would prove that Seiran could never hope to outsmart them, and he was going to do that by robbing the serum from right under his nose.

Kira had never planned on attacking the safehouse in the first place. Forcing Seiran to withdraw the team was a form of misdirection. His real target was in fact the withdrawing team itself, because there was no doubt that the serum would be with the team.

There was only one way of getting to the safehouse – a single road that branched from the highway and cut through the valley, straight to the house. So all cars going in and out had to travel over the same road. And because of that, the police had a patrol car parked horizontally across the mouth of the road. All who wished to pass had to produce a valid ID. The advantage (or at least, from the vantage point of the cops) was that they could concentrate all their attention on that single entrance. They didn't have to worry about anyone sneaking up on them from behind.

But Kira and his team circumvented the patrol car, by simply leaving the highway from another road two miles away, depositing their mode of transport behind and trekking the rest of the way through the forest.

And as for the disadvantage of having a single entrance and exit to the safehouse, Kira had all intentions of exploiting it. If anything were to obstruct the road – say, a heap of fallen trees – then the convoy would be trapped and cornered. Like being jammed by a cork in the mouth of a bottle. And all that was left would be a bunch of sitting ducks. You could take them out one by one using a rifle.

Like target practice.

_Perfect._

Except that there was a possibility that Athrun Zala would ruin the plan.

Kira glared at the blue-haired detective through the lenses of his binoculars, noting the cautious way in which the man turned and surveyed his surroundings, the way in which his right hand was tucked into his jacket pocket. There was no doubt that he was armed. Kira wasn't pleased to see Athrun Zala at all. _How much did he know already? How much of a threat was he? _The sight of Athrun Zala reminded Kira of Lacus Clyne and he winced internally at the memory of the unpleasant encounter he had had with her. It had taken him a while to calm the roiling in his stomach and wipe the perspiration off his face. Even then, the team had given him odd glances when he emerged from the elevator, still slightly shaken. But he had brushed them off, and they were smart enough not to pursue it.

Before leaving the warehouse, Stellar had asked what they were going to do with Lacus Clyne. And Kira had answered with fake nonchalance, "I'll deal with her later." He had forced mock bravado into his voice, even though he felt sick right down to his stomach. And they had left it at that.

But to be honest, Kira had no idea what he was going to do with Lacus Clyne.

He snapped out of his thoughts when he saw movement through his binoculars. Athrun Zala was descending the steps of the porch and beside him, was a mop of blonde hair. He focused his attention on the blonde woman and found himself staring at the face of Cagalli Yamato.

There was a curious stirring deep inside his mind, and for a second, Kira worried that he would black out again. A barrage of images was flashing through his mind. _A little blonde girl pulling at his hand. Tugging at his hair. Laughing. Crying. Calling out to him. _

Kira dropped the binoculars on the moss-covered ground and put his head down, closing his eyes. The smell of damp dirt filled his nostrils as he took one deep breath after another, trying to stem the images. He didn't even know if they were his imaginings. Or memories… But he knew he was in danger. _Damn. _Emotions were dangerous; they were lethal. You couldn't _ever _have emotions when you were on a mission. Descending into a rage caused excessive destruction, which would easily leave clues behind; succumbing to panic led to carelessness; hesitance when pulling the trigger could get you killed. Emotions were a bane to an assassin's job. But here he was, spacing out when he was in the midst of a mission. _Fuck_, he slammed a fist into the dirt.

"K? Everything alright?"

He whipped his head round to see Stellar at the bottom of the mound, crouched low to the ground. Her dirty-green knitted top and slacks blended in with her surroundings, just like his own garments. She was addressing him with his codename, which was used only when they were on missions, and that reminded him again that they were in the midst of an operation. _He couldn't afford distractions. _

Muttering a quick 'yes' before she could press him further, Kira dug his feet into the ground and propelled himself backwards, careful to stay low so that he wouldn't be spotted. Trekking back down the dirt mound, he drew up alongside Stellar and they both melted back into the foliage.

* * *

"What's going to happen now?" Cagalli said. They were standing some ways off the gravel drive, watching as the last of the equipment were piled into the trunks. "Shall we stay here in the safehouse? We might be able to hold them off until Yzak's team gets here." She chewed on her bottom lip, glancing at Athrun who was leaning against a tree, a deep scowl across his face. He turned his gaze on her and said, "Do you think they're going to infiltrate the safehouse?" His tone was bitter and sardonic, and Cagalli could sense that it was a rhetorical question, so she didn't answer.

Athrun continued. "They already know where the safehouse is. I don't know how or why. But they're probably on their way here. But do you think they're really going to infiltrate the safehouse? You think they really believe Seiran's going to obey their demands? You think they'll play right into Seiran's hands?" He shook his head. "These people _know_ Seiran. Heck, they _played_ him into obeying their demands because they know he's ambitious. But most ambitious people think that they're smart and everyone else is stupid. So they'll also know Seiran's got some tricks up his sleeves. He's not going to offer the serum to them on a silver platter, no matter how scared he seems. I'll bet they're not coming to the safehouse at all."

"If they're not coming up here, then what are they after?"

Athrun nodded towards the parked vehicles. "They're going to be after the convoy itself. Because they know Seiran will have the serum withdrawn together with the team."

Cagalli stared at him slack-jawed. "If that's the case, we can't just let the convoy drive off with it! How in the world are we going to stop them?"

"We don't," Athrun said.

Again, the same stare from Cagalli.

Athrun shrugged. "Sometimes, the best way to catch your prey is not to hunt it down," he said, glancing at her, "but to let it come and find you. And to do that, you need some bait."

Cagalli quirked a suspicious eyebrow at him. "So in the meantime, we do nothing? Sit back, relax and enjoy the show, is that it?" She protested sarcastically.

Athrun glanced at his watch. They had half an hour more to go. There was still no sign of Seiran, and there was no way Seiran would want to miss his own performance. So he pushed himself of the tree trunk and stepped away from the gravel drive, heading into the midst of the forest. "In the meantime," he repeated, beckoning to Cagalli, "I'm going to teach you how to hunt."

* * *

They had found a little clearing not far from the safehouse and set up shop there.

Under normal circumstances, they would have been cautious of doing so, because there would be cops and officers patrolling the forest, watching out for intruders. But Sting had scanned the area with infrared sensors that detected body heat, and the readings had turned up negative, except for slight bursts of red flares on the screen, triggered by the animals wandering the woods. It was all clear. Seiran had completely overlooked the need for patrolmen.

When Kira and Stellar returned to the clearing, they found that Sting and Auel were already back from their mission. They were sitting cross-legged on the forest floor, their camouflaged apparel looking dark underneath the shade of the canopy. Sting tossed a canteen towards him as he emerged from the thicket alongside Stellar. Kira caught it deftly and took a swig from it. The liquid burnt as it coursed down his throat.

"Scotch?" He quirked an eyebrow at Sting, who was grinning at him with a mischievous glint in his eye. "How did you get it?"

"Swiped it when I got a chance," he chuckled, "been saving it up for now."

Kira responded with an amused tweak of his lips, as he took another sip from the canteen. The alcohol was just right - it wasn't too weak, but it wasn't too strong either. It set him on his toes, got him geared up. And more importantly, it awakened his senses, made him more aware of what he was doing. And that prevented him from spacing out, and kept the 'side-effects' at bay. There was no way they could fuck up this mission, not unless they wanted Rau Le Creuset to put them on his next target list.

Tossing the canteen at Stellar, he nodded towards the black box that Auel had in front of him, set on the leaf-covered floor. "You've got it all rigged up?" He asked.

"Yeah, all seventy pounds," Auel smirked, then pointed at the black box he had before him, "And the detonator is all set."

Kira smiled. _Perfect._

* * *

Cagalli hefted the .22 revolver in her right palm. It was lighter than she had expected, but in her mind, she knew the consequences were heavy. "Are you sure about this?" She asked tentatively.

Athrun shrugged his shoulders. He glanced down at the pile of leaves he had created by shuffling his foot. "I don't want to lose you."

For a second, Cagalli thought that she saw what appeared to be a blush suffusing Athrun's cheeks and she expected him to say more, but Athrun left the sentence to hang, then reached out and took the gun from her, changing the subject. "Lunamaria's got it loaded for you already. Look." He turned the chamber and showed it to her, then racked it back into place again. Then he showed her how to grip it, his fingers brushing against hers lightly, and explained how the firing mechanism worked.

"This is a double-action revolver, which means there isn't a safety catch, like mine." Athrun pulled out his own weapon and pointed out the lever on his gun, then pocketed it again. "So that means there's no risk of you forgetting to flick the safety." Cagalli now had a look of horror on her face and she held the gun outwards like it might accidentally discharge itself.

Athrun chuckled. "No," he smiled, "though the revolver doesn't have a safety catch, it's double –action, which means you need to apply far more pressure on the trigger before it fires. The safety is built into the trigger itself, so unless you exert enough pressure on it, it isn't going to discharge."

"Oh."

"Okay, let's try a little targeting practice." He stepped away, shrugging off his jacket, until he was a few paces away from her. There, he slung his jacket over a low hanging branch and turned around to find Cagalli practicing her aiming, her gun muzzle pointed at him.

"Woah!" He exclaimed, putting both hands up in alarm, "Rule number one: do not point your gun at anything you do not intend to shoot."

Cagalli stared at him, not comprehending, then realizing her mistake, hurriedly dropped the gun. It clattered to the mossy ground and for a second, Athrun's heart nearly sank into his shoes. He moved quickly to her side, and picked up the gun. _Thank god_ _it hadn't misfired. _"Okay, okay," he said, handing her the gun butt-first, "Rule number two: never drop your gun or throw it at someone. Even though I said the safety is built into the trigger, we don't want it misfiring by accident, do we? And don't point it at yourself."

"Oh, right, sorry," Cagalli said sheepishly.

"Aim at the jacket, but don't shoot okay?" Athrun said, "Your gun only has six rounds in it. We don't want to waste a bullet on my jacket. And we don't want Yzak and the rest of the agents to come running."

"Right." She paused and tried to fix a target on Athrun's jacket, then added hesitantly, "I'm not sure if I'll shoot when the time comes."

Athrun placed a flat palm on her raised gun and lowered it. Emerald eyes turned on her and they were so intense that they made Cagalli feel a little uncomfortable. "Stay close, understand?" he said, voice grim and serious, "You won't need to fire this thing if _I_ can help it. This is just for precaution, in case I'm occupied somewhere else, or I'm down. In which case, remember rule number one? You make up your mind that that's the person you want to shoot, then you aim it at that person. Doesn't matter if your aim is lousy. Just don't hesitate. Once you've got the gun pointed at him, press down hard on the trigger, all the way down, and put all six rounds into that person. You hear? I've lost the people I've loved, I don't want to lose you next."

By the time they trudged back to the safehouse, the .22 revolver tucked discreetly in Cagalli's jacket pocket, they found another vehicle on the drive – Yuna Roma Seiran had joined the party.

Seiran had a bandage taped over the bridge of his nose, and the moment he caught sight of Athrun emerging from amongst the trees, he held a defensive hand over his nose. "What the hell are you doing here?" He said darkly.

Athrun took a step forward, and felt Cagalli rest a hand gently on his forearm. There was a worried expression on her face and she shook her head slightly when he turned to glance at her. A silent warning. _Don't do it. _

But Athrun wasn't intending to hurt Seiran anyway, no matter how much he wanted to. So he cupped a reassuring hand over hers and nodded. Turning back to Seiran, who was eyeing him suspiciously, he said, "Look, I'm sorry" – although he wasn't in the least sorry for what he had done – "I admit I was rash." He paused to see if Seiran would respond, but the man showed nothing on his face other than distrust and revulsion towards him.

"Look," Athrun said again, trying to sound patient. _Damn, he was being reasonable and he shouldn't need to entertain an asshole like Seiran with his polite manners. _"It's just that I'm… anxious to solve this case. We both want the criminals to be apprehended, right? So why should we be enemies when we can work together? Huh, Seiran?"

The suspicion on Seiran's face began to fade, replaced by a smirk that Athrun sensed to be hostile. "Let me think about it," Seiran said, "I'll let you know again later whether I'm in a forgiving mood." He gave Athrun a complacent smile and began to walk away.

"Look, Seiran, they're not going to attack the safehouse," Athrun snarled, done with being the nice guy.

The purple-haired detective paused in his tracks and turned his head slightly to look at him over his shoulder. "What are you talking about?"

"They're not attacking the safehouse, Seiran," Athrun repeated. He tried to keep his voice steady and calm. _This was his last chance to reason with the man and for Lacus, he had to turn Seiran around._ "Think about it. They're smart. They know the serum is with us. The moment we move out of this place, they're going to attack the convoy. So we need to-"

"What you need to do-," Seiran said, raising his voice so that he drowned out Athrun's. A couple of agents and officers, distracted by the commotion, paused in their work and turned to glance at them. "-is to get your ass out of here before I have you run out." He turned and got into one of the automobiles. The rest of the team lingered for a second, hesitant and unsure whose side they had to stand on, but a yell from Seiran had them scrambling for the cars.

The last to leave was Yzak, who stood by the open passenger seat. He glanced at Athrun and Cagalli and nodded grimly - a message that said _I'll do my best - _then got in beside Seiran, the silver briefcase wedged between them.

The first car at the entrance of the gravel drive began to move and the convoy followed swiftly. The car Seiran and Yzak were in slid into place behind the second car.

Athrun watched it leave, frustration eating at his insides. _He couldn't do anything. Nothing at all. _And when the drive was empty, he kicked furiously at the gravel and glowered at the little pebbles that rained down onto the ground helplessly, leaving behind a brown wisp of sand lingering in the air.

* * *

10:05 a.m.

A finger depressed the button on a detonator and a loud blast echoed through the forest.

_Author's note: Well, what do ya think? I know, I know, I'm working on the next chappie and it's definitely going to feature the meeting between Kira, Athrun and Cagalli. But before that, of course, do review, review, review and let me know what you think. That'll help me improve too! And to my readers:_

_Pinksugardust: Firstly, I'm sorry the reunion didn't take place in this chapter. But I assure you it will be in the next :)_

_FTS-Peace: Thank you very much for the comment. I really appreciate it, since I strive for as much detail as I can. The reunion will take place in the next chappie, so I hope to hear from you again! Now, about that romance between Cagalli and Athrun, sheesh, I think I'm really lousy at it. What do you think? I can't quite seem to grasp the nature of their relationship and I've been rewatching GS and GSD over and over again. Oh boy… I really need some help in this._

_Natsumexmikan43vr: Heh, you guessed right. I tend to have cliff-hangers, because I usually need time to work out the exciting bits, so there really is a chance they might meet at the end of the chapter. _

_hardcoseGSfan: Hey, are you a Murrue fan? I laughed out loud when I saw your comment! About the tipping off, I'll come back to it in the upcoming chapters so how it happened will become clearer later. As for the reunion, I'm working on it. It'll definitely be in the next chapter! Gosh, and I didn't realize that it was Cagalli and Kira's b'day too, until you mentioned it! Now I feel bad – how could I torture Kira when it's his birthday!?_

_Cheeseries: hehe, are you as sadistic as me? I just hope I don't go torturing Kira too much!_

_Ragingwing004: hey, I've tried to follow your request and made my chapters longer, but of course that takes more time. So I figured I'll update with whatever I have completed while I work on the next chapter! So it's not very long, but I do hope it still stays exciting?_

_AAA: Indeed, Rau is going to be so pissed, but I'll see if I can protect Kira from Rau as long as I can, hehehe. As for the reunion, it'll definitely take place in the next chapter so do look out. Hope to hear what you think about it!_

_Animedoshia: thank you for the support all this while! I'm really glad you like this fanfic. Do expect more Kira-Lacus moments. I believe they should be coming up after the reunion between Athrun and Kira!_

_Seiba Artoria: I wouldn't have Kira kill Lacus. That'll be torturing Kira waaaay too much! And I do believe the reunion will be coming up in the next chappie so hopefully, there won't be any other obstacles. I can't wait for them to meet too!_


	53. 52

_Author's note: I am truly, absolutely, exhausted from writing this chapter. Both mentally and physically. This is waaaaaay too much action!_

**Chapter 52**

The first explosion took them by surprise.

By the time the driver had seen the flash of light on his right, and slammed his foot into the brake, it was too late. The collapsing tree, with its bottom-half blown to splinters, fell like a deadweight, crushing the front of the automobile. The car jammed to an abrupt stop, weighed down by the enormous trunk. The windshield shattered inwards, raining the driver and the front passenger with tiny shards of glass.

Behind, the second car skidded, its driver alarmed and confused, spinning the wheel anxiously. But the tires failed to grip the asphalt and the vehicle fishtailed dangerously before slamming headlong into the first. The third screeched to a halt behind it, then the fourth behind the third. Horns blared; headlights blinked. All eyes fixed on the tragic car wreck. Leaves and branches rained down on the convoy, scattering across the hoods like pebbles. It was as if a colossal giant had grabbed a hold of the forest and shaken it with his mighty hands.

Then the second explosion happened.

If the driver of the fourth car had been slower, the tree would have fallen horizontally across the vehicle, smashing the rear passenger seat and the agents sitting in it. But the driver was quick, and the last car in the convoy shot forward to avoid the collapsing tree behind. It crashed into the rear of the third vehicle and sent it careening into the second.

A quadruple collision, obscured by the drifting leaves, falling branches and grey smoke.

* * *

Athrun saw it all unfold.

When he turned the corner in his black convertible at seventy miles per hour, struggling to catch up with the convoy.

"Oh god," Cagalli put a hand over her mouth. Just as Athrun slammed his foot into the brakes. Tires screeched loudly in protest and the convertible jolted to an abrupt stop several meters away from the second fallen tree, which now lay across the road obstructing all vehicle access. "Oh shit," Athrun muttered, shaking his head, "shit." Cagalli whipped her head around and stared at him, and was frightened by what she saw in his face – it was a look of plain horror.

Because in that split instant, it had all become clear to the detective.

The convoy was now trapped between the two fallen trees, all four vehicles squashed like sardines in a can, one lined after another. The first had its front hood crushed beneath a tree; the last had its tailgate pressed tight against the tree bark. No way in. No way out. Trapped.

And vulnerable to open fire.

By the time Athrunjumped out of his convertible, a voice was screaming in his mind. _This was the plan all along! Those bastards were going to trap the convoy, and take them out one by one. Just like gathering chickens in a slaughterhouse. That was it; that was the plan._ As he ran around the hood of his car, he caught sight of the agents and officers emerging from the collision, with bewildered expressions on their faces.

Standing in plain view of the snipers.

"Get down!" Athrun yelled, wrenching open Cagalli's door and hauling her out by her arm. She stared at him, shock making her movements slow. "What's happening, Athrun?" She gasped. He towed her towards the fallen tree and shoved her head down so that she was tucked underneath the curve of the cylindrical trunk. "Get down!" He screamed as loud as he could at the men. Heads turned round to look at him. "Get down! Get out of the line of fire!" He gestured wildly, but none seemed to understand what he was saying. Until he caught sight of silver hair, and saw a look of realization dawn on Yzak Joule's face. Immediately, Yzak sank to a crouch, yelling orders at the agents. But before the rest of them could react, a single gunshot pierced the air and an agent from the first car fell to the ground, leaving behind a red mist of sprayed blood.

Chaos broke out as the agents and officers threw themselves to the ground. Athrun flung himself over Cagalli, pushing her head down and away from the line of fire. A barrage of shots began to rain down on the convoy, piercing metal, shattering windscreens and penetrating flesh. The groans of men dying filled the air, but the gunfire was relentless. The windscreen of Athrun's convertible shattered; the tires exploded. _They were not safe there, _Athrun thought desperately, _there was no shelter from the gunfire. _The tree trunk under which they were holed up was shaking and jerking with the bullets punctuating its were flying all over the place, cutting him across the face and arms. _They had to move. They had to get out. But where? Where could they go without exposing themselves? _

"Come on," he yelled at Cagalli, tugging at her shoulder. There were tears streaming down Cagalli's face and she looked genuinely shaken by the sudden assault, but Athrun felt relieved when he saw clarity in those eyes. They weren't glazed over with fear, and he counted on Cagalli to hold her ground. "Come on," he yelled again, trying to make himself heard over the commotion. "Stay low!" He began to crawl along the underside of the fallen tree, trying to keep himself sandwiched between the ground and the curve of the trunk. He felt Cagalli close behind. They managed to get off the asphalt and were approaching the edge of the forest when Athrun realized that there was nearly two meters of unsheltered area that they had to run across if they wanted to get under the cover of the trees. They couldn't risk it, not with the stray bullets that were still showering down like rain. So he changed course, and as he rounded the bend of the tree, he found that its base had been hollowed out from the explosion that toppled it. Dragging Cagalli over, he started to shove her into the hollowed area. "Stay here," he shouted, "You'll be hidden."

"No!"

He stared in despair as Cagalli kicked out at him and tried to wriggle her way out of the hollow. " . .you," she snapped in staccato tones, but Athrun put a hand over her mouth and thrust her back inside. "Listen," he snapped, "I'll be okay. What I need you to do is stay here! I'll get you later. I promise!"

Cagalli ceased her struggling. She looked absolutely terrified now but Athrun made sure she was tucked into the corner, protected from the gunfire. Then, feeling suddenly afraid, he pressed his lips to her brow and whispered, "Stay safe."

He didn't wait to see her reaction. Ducking, he scrambled around the fallen tree, entering ground zero where the gunfire was concentrated and pausing when a row of bullets smacked the scuffed asphalt at his feet. Now that he had a view of the wreck, Athrun realized that the torrent of shots he had heard didn't come only from hostile fire. The agents and officers, or at least those who were still alive, were returning fire, but there was little that sheltered them from attack. And Athrun noticed too that there was a certain pattern to the gunfire. From the sloping sides of the valley, he saw a muzzle flash and an agent ducked behind the tire of the second car, then rose again from his spot and aimed at the sniper's approximate position. _Bang, bang, bang. _A triple tap. Then again, a muzzle flash somewhere on the opposite slope and the bullet caught the same agent in the thigh and he fell. Athrun watched as a uniformed officer scrambled towards the fallen agent and hauled him underneath a car, which was in itself a pitiful cover, riddled with bullet holes, its windscreens all shattered.

Then again, muzzle flash on the right, fifty feet away. Then the left, sixty-five feet away. They were all over the place, and Athrun counted at least four different locations from which the snipers were firing. But these were no ordinary foe; it appeared as if they knew the muzzle flash from their rifles would give their location away. So after every shot, they moved, changing positions so that none of the agents or officers had a clue where they were going to be next.

It was like sitting in a slaughterhouse, with nowhere to hide. Just waiting for the axe to descend.

Behind the third car, Athrun spotted Yzak, crouched low, firing rapidly at the midst of the forest. Beside him, Seiran was a quaking wreck, his hands wrapped around his head. An officer fell down dead and Seiran squealed. He shoved the man aside and started to crawl underneath the car, pushing and shoving the other agents that were using the vehicle as their shield, exposing them, including Yzak, to the line of fire.

Athrun scrambled for cover as he heard the whistle of a slug fly narrowly past his head. _Keep moving, keep moving,_ he thought as he skidded across the asphalt and dove under the fourth automobile. _A moving target was always more difficult to shoot than a still one. _It was a tight fit underneath the vehicle; there were already two agents taking cover under the car and they would fire blindly from their hiding place whenever the onslaught paused.

_They needed more hiding places. But where? Where else could they hide?_

Athrun peered desperately from underneath his cover, then ducked back as a multitude of shots cracked the asphalt road where his head had been less than a second ago. _All they had were four cars, stuck between two tree trunks. What the fuck were they going to hide under? _

Then Athrun made up his mind.

"Cover me," he barked at the two agents, then spotting Yzak under the third car, he yelled, "I'm going to drive this car. Shoot the tires!" It didn't make sense, but Yzak just nodded, hunkering down to avoid a shot in his direction.

Athrun rolled out from underneath the fourth car and flung himself into the driver's seat. The car door wouldn't close, so he kicked it aside with his heel. He turned the car key in the ignition but the car spluttered and hissed like an angry animal. A stray bullet ricocheted off the dashboard and missed Athrun by mere inches. Immediately, Yzak and the other agents sent a volley of bullets in the direction of the sniper. Athrun tried again, wrenching hard at the key, and the engine finally growled to life. Ramming the gearshift into 'drive', Athrun spun the wheel like a madman and floored the accelerator. The car shuddered for a second before jerking free of the third automobile and its crushed bumper. Struggling to retain his grip on the steering wheel, Athrun swung clear of the car wreck. He manipulated the fourth car until he could get it aligned with the third, then stamping the accelerator, he shouted over the roar of the engine and the gunfire. "Yzak, now!"

The car shot past the silver-haired detective. A double-tap to each tire. _Bang, bang. Bang, bang. _The left tires exploded and the sudden outburst of air and the speed lifted the car and tipped it precariously onto its right. Athrun fought the wheel, trying to steady it. With a loud crash, the car rammed over the third automobile, left wheels gliding over the length of the vehicle, ripping off its side mirror. Athrun jammed both feet onto the brake and killed the engine with a hard wrench of the key. The fourth car was now leaning diagonally against the third, leaving a triangular gap between both cars, a sufficient hiding place for them, at least for the time being.

Athrun put his head down as bullets littered the hood of the car he was in. The snipers were concentrating the gunfire on him now. With the car tilted as it was, Athrun was dumped out onto the asphalt from the driver's seat. A row of bullets punctured the road and Athrun struggled to his feet, stumbling around the car and diving for the empty space between both vehicles. All the while, bullets dug holes into the asphalt where his plodding feet had been.

There were already a couple of agents and officers huddled inside, using the automobiles as shields as they fired blindly into the foliage, unable to determine where their attackers were. Seiran was there, and he began to shriek when he saw Athrun crawl in after them. "Where are they?" He yelled, purple hair disheveled, eyes wild. "Call for back up! Call for back up!" He tried to wrestle a cell phone from Yzak, who knocked him aside with a snarl.

"Goddamn it, just shut up!" Athrun yelled as Seiran began to repeat the litany over and over again. He shoved the distraught man between two officers, told them to make sure he didn't do anything stupid, then pulled his own gun from his jacket pocket and flicked the safety off. He was wary of the number of bullets he had and was reluctant to fire randomly into the forest when he didn't have a clue where the snipers were, but what else could he do?

He didn't have long to ponder, because all of a sudden, silence fell over the place like a heavy shroud. The gunfire ceased unexpectedly. Panting hard, ears ringing, Athrun leaned against the hot metal of the car door. _What was it? What was happening? _A rough hand shook his shoulder and he spun around. It was Yzak and he was saying something. Or yelling. But Athrun had no idea what he was saying because he couldn't hear a single thing.

The gunfire had deafened him, and its sudden end had rendered the entire place eerily silent. "What?" he shouted back, and the look on Yzak's face told him that the silver-haired detective couldn't hear him either. So it was a futile conversation and it wasn't until Yzak thrust him roughly underneath the car, shoving his face up close to the asphalt, that Athrun understood, with horror, what was happening.

From underneath the car, Athrun caught a glimpse of legs running away from the collision, and _oh goddamn it, _it was Seiran.

And clutched to Yuna Roma Seiran's chest was the silver briefcase.

Suddenly, it was as if all the sounds in the world came rushing back and Athrun could hear again. And the first thing he heard, was Seiran's yelling. The mad man was sprinting across the road, shouting, "Take it! Take it! Take it!"

"No!" Athrun bellowed as he hurled himself from their hiding place and lunged after Seiran. They were both exposed now, wide open. Anytime now, a bullet could come whistling. Athrun just ducked his head and ran, leaping over the bodies of fallen men. _No, no no… _Seiran was almost at the edge of the forest and Athrun saw a dark shadow move quickly through the trees. "Seiran, no! Get down!" He yelled, but the purple-haired detective just dashed on.

A single gunshot, like the clap of thunder, and Athrun knew for certain that Seiran was dead, even before he saw the body crumple before his eyes.

Athrun was still twenty feet away from the silver briefcase.

Ahead, the moving shadow began to take shape and Athrun realized that it was a man, dressed in dark-green camouflage with a black balaclava covering his face. The stranger was skidding down the slope, ducking around the trees and bushes, heading straight for Seiran's body and the silver briefcase, which was now lying on its side in the dirt. Athrun swung his gun in the man's direction, but the man had a pistol aimed at him too. Instinctively, Athrun knew he wouldn't be quick enough - the man would pull the trigger on him before he could even get an accurate aim.

He was still ten feet away from the silver briefcase.

The crack of a gunshot.

Athrun flattened himself to the ground, cheek pressed tight against the road surface, almost certain that his reaction had been too slow. Yet, there was no searing pain, no bullet tearing through his flesh. Still belly-down on the hot road, he tried to lift his head to see what was happening, but the sound of five more gunshots made him throw his arms over his head to protect it. _Basic training; common sense – it was better to get hit in the arm than in the head. _

Six consecutive rounds in total.

Still there was no pain. Athrun glanced up quickly, ready to roll to the side if the man's gun was pointed at him. But he realized, to his surprise, that the man was on the ground too, five feet away from the silver briefcase. The six rounds hadn't been targeted at Athrun, but at the stranger. And the man had realized it too. His attention was no longer fixed on Athrun; his head was turned towards the source of the gunfire and when Athrun followed his gaze, he was nearly overwhelmed with panic.

Cagalli was standing at the edge of the forest, some forty feet away from them, both hands on her gun, a look of horror and disbelief plastered on her face.

_Six rounds, _the voice in Athrun's mind screamed. He remembered his words to her: _You make up your mind that that's the person you want to shoot, then you aim it at that person. Doesn't matter if your aim is lousy. Just don't hesitate. Once you've got the gun pointed at him, press down hard on the trigger, all the way down, and put all six rounds into that person._

The broken promise he had made lit up his mind - _You won't need to fire this thing if __I__ can help it__. _

But Cagalli had fired it, and that meant that there were no more rounds in her revolver. She had no means of protecting herself now, after having distracted the man's attention so that Athrun himself wouldn't get shot.

The man was pushing to his feet, eyes still trained on Cagalli. The hand, which was holding his gun, was already moving, and Athrun scrambled desperately to his feet. "Get down, Cagalli!" He shouted, changing course, running _away_ from the silver briefcase and towards Cagalli.

The voice in his mind told him that he wasn't going to make it. _It was too late. There was no time. _He was still thirty feet away from Cagalli, who stood frozen in the spot, staring wide-eyed at the stranger. _There was no way. Too slow. Too slow. _Athrun snuck a glance around his shoulder. He saw that the man was now on his feet, stance firm, his gun swinging through a smooth arc. Anytime now, he was going to fix a target on Cagalli. _Too slow. _Athrun squeezed off two rounds at the man, even as he continued running towards Cagalli, but the man just leaned left and the bullets whistled past him harmlessly. He didn't even look distracted – his gaze was still set on Cagalli; his gun still moving in her direction. _What was that? How the hell did that happen? _

Willing his legs to go faster, Athrun surged on. Twnety-five feet. _Almost there. _Twenty feet. "Get down, Cagalli!" He yelled again, but fear, panic, disbelief, whatever it was, had Cagalli rooted to the spot. A glance over his shoulder made his heart stop. The man's gun was in place, barrel pointing straight at Cagalli. Athrun's quick eyes noted that the man's index finger was within the trigger guard; he was going to pull the trigger. He was going to shoot Cagalli. _No time. Too slow. Still ten feet away from Cagalli. _

Anytime now, he would hear the whistle of the bullet, the sickening crunch as metal impacted flesh, the grotesque folding of the body as it slumped to the ground. _No, no, no…_

But it didn't come.

Ten feet away, Athrun threw himself at Cagalli, knocking her over. He waited for the excruciating pain of a bullet boring into his flesh, but felt only the burn of scraped knees and elbows as he crushed Cagalli between the asphalt and his body. _What happened? _He turned and saw the man standing forty feet away from them, just staring. Gun aimed at them, finger against the trigger, but unmoving. Like in a trance.

_What was that about?_

Athrun swung his gun in the man's direction, and that appeared to shake him out of his stupor, because he ducked the bullet coming his way, snagged the handle of the silver briefcase with his left hand and began to run.

_Shit._

Athrun scrambled to his feet, pulling Cagalli after him. "Are you alright?" He brushed back disheveled blonde hair away from her sweaty face, so that he could look into her eyes. _Thank god, they didn't look glazed over with death. _"Are you alright?" He said again, then realised that he was shouting, and shaking Cagalli with more force than he intended. She was unsteady on her feet, but she put both hands on his shoulders and nodded. "Y-Yes," she stammered, then pointing in the direction that the man had disappeared, she pushed him away. "Go… go!"

Torn, Athrun couldn't decide if he ought to leave Cagalli behind. There were surely more snipers, but the gunfire appeared to have ceased. Glancing round, he noticed that the agents and officers who were still alive, had emerged from their covers, and were now tending to the wounded. Yzak was radioing for ambulances and backup teams. _Was it safe to leave Cagalli?_

"Go!" Cagalli snapped, shoving him again in the direction of the forest.

That cemented Athrun's decision and he turned and took off, dashing into the midst of the forest. Already there was no sight of the man with the silver briefcase, but a trail of wrecked bushes and trodden grass indicated the stranger's escape route. Athrun followed it, running as fast as he could, legs pumping. In his right hand, he held his gun just in case.

Six minutes into his running, he heard the crash of bushes, not in front of him, but behind him. Spinning around, gun cocked, he found himself face-to-face with Cagalli.

"What the hell are you doing here?" He yelled, completely unable to keep the dismay out of his voice. He had stopped dead in his tracks, but Cagalli didn't. She ran on past him, still on the trail of broken foliage. "I told you," She panted, shouting over her shoulder, "I'm going with you." She ducked under a low-hanging branch and continued onwards, not even turning around to see if Athrun was following her.

Frustrated, Athrun kicked up a nearby shrub until it was dead and scattered all over the ground in bits and pieces, then he started after Cagalli. "Go back!" He yelled, even though he knew what the blonde woman's answer would be.

"No!" Cagalli snapped.

The terrain was getting rougher, and steeper. There were raised mounds and hills and boulders that stood in their way and they had to duck around them. So talking became more difficult, and Athrun just shut his mouth and ran on.

They thrashed through the forest, sticking persistently to the direction that the stranger was running, unconcerned about minimizing the commotion they were causing. And judging from the destruction caused by the man, neither was he interested in keeping quiet.

Ten minutes later, the trees and bushes began to thin out and they both emerged on the other side of the forest. They were on high ground, like standing at the top of a sand dune, and stretched out below them, at the bottom of the slope, was a small, winding road that led out towards the highway.

Glancing downwards, Athrun saw four figures in black skidding down the slope, heading straight for a deep-blue sedan that was parked on the side of the winding road.

And one of them was holding the silver briefcase in his hand.

_Author's note: There! So, what do you think about this chapter? There's much more to come, of course, and we're steadily working our way to the meeting between Athrun, Cagalli and Kira. That is, if Athrun and Cagalli can catch up to Kira! Well? How'd you find this chappie? Review, review, review and let me know!_


	54. 53

_Author's note: Hey there! Here's the next chappie. So sorry for the delay – I've been out most of this week and I had a little trouble working out the details in this chappie. But hope all's well now! _

_FTS-peace: I'm glad the asucaga relationship is working out. I really have to think long and hard about it. Thanks for the comment, about how Cagalli can be considered Athrun's 'saviour' in GS? That makes sense! And it gave me a way of thinking about their relationship here, so thank you! I'm glad you like it! I hope there's more coming up!_

_Seiba Artoria: I do hope the explosion and the way Yzak and Athrun handled it were good...? Yes, I do agree, Athrun is so smart! Must be the coordinator genes! Hehehe… And about Cagalli shooting Kira, well, I guess she just wanted to distract Kira and protect Athrun… At least I thought of it that way when I was writing it… hmm…_

_hardcoreGSfan: Hehehe, I really hope Kira doesn't get back at me! I love him too much! And oh, careful! It's not worth getting hurt over a fanfic! Scientists should design chairs with seatbelts, yup yup… And I hope all your projects are going well! :) Hopefully the all-nighters will pay off._

_Moi: I'm excited for the twin's reunion too! I'm working up to it, and hope it'll be good eventually! Yeah well, about Cagalli shooting, I just thought it would be a way of Cagalli distracting Kira to prevent him from shooting Athrun… maybe that'll trigger something in Kira, hmm… And yup, I'm glad Seiran's out of the picture too! That way, Athrun can really do what he needs to do!_

_Animedoshia: Thank you, for the support and the reviews and everything! I'm flattered, and very happy that you enjoy this fanfic! Hope to get your support all the way to the end!_

_Ragingwing004: Well, I am glad too that Seiran's gone. It's payback for everything he did to Athrun in GS and GSD! I never liked the fact that he was bullying Athrun all the time in the anime! Serves him right!_

_And with that, let us move on! Please read and I hope you enjoy!_

**Chapter 53:**

Cagalli Yamato was the _most_ stubborn woman he had ever seen.

And at times, Athrun loved her stubborn streak. It gave her spunk, and character. But at the present moment, Athrun hated _it_ more than anything else. No sooner had he warned her to stay put, than the blonde woman leapt off the edge of the slope and stumbled down the side of the hill, arms flailing so that she could maintain balance despite the steep gradient.

"Oh fuck," Athrun gave himself a second to rap out the expletive, then another three or four more seconds to vent his frustration on a clump of dirt with his shoe, before he leapt off the edge after her.

The sloping side of the mound they were now on was bare and packed with soil, unlike its other side which was grassy and forested. There were no trees or bushes standing in their way, and that was good, because it made their descent easy. But that was bad too, because Athrun was aware that they were both in plain view. The four figures ahead of them were nearing the bottom of the hill, and if they turned around, they would see Athrun and Cagalli in pursuit close behind. And to make things even more harrowing than they already were, Athrun was aware of the loose dirt and soil being scuffed from under the bottoms of his shoes as he slid down the inclined plane. _God, they didn't need an avalanche at this point in time. _His right sneaker caught a sharp rock jutting from the surface and he stumbled, nearly falling head-over-heels as he tried to fight the momentum and the pull of gravity.

He realized in despair that ahead, the four figures, all in camouflage, had made it to flat ground and they were hustling quickly towards the parked vehicle. _If they got into the car, there would be no way to catch up to them._ Athrun put on a burst of speed, riding on the downwards pull, feeling like his legs would get pulled out from under him at any moment. Five feet away from the base of the slope, Athrun saw one of the figures turn and pause, as if stunned to see them so close. He swung a pistol towards them and Athrun's first reaction was to spin around and grab Cagalli, who was right behind him. They collided and tumbled to the ground off balance, with Athrun crushing her underneath his body and away from the line of fire.

But there appeared to be no need for it, because when Athrun raised his head off the ground, he saw the man with the stolen briefcase turn and grab his accomplice, pushing the gun barrel away from its target. For a second, they shared a glance – Athrun and the man who had saved them – and Athrun felt a chill run down his spine. The man's cold eyes raked over his face, emotionless, like the eyes of a murderer, but what was frightening was that in that split second, Athrun felt as if he knew those eyes.

Then the feeling was gone, as the man shoved his accomplice into the deep-blue sedan and piled in after his teammates. A rev of the engine, and the deep-blue sedan took off, tires screeching on the asphalt road.

Athrun scrambled to his feet, hauled Cagalli after him and lunged after the racing vehicle. It was already evident that the criminals had gotten a head start and the chase on foot was fruitless. The distance between him and the escaping vehicle kept lengthening, up to the point that Athrun knew even with his superb marksmanship, he couldn't take out the tires with his gun. But still, he ran on after the car. His thighs were burning, his heart thumping so hard that his chest hurt. Close behind, he could hear Cagalli's desperate wheezing as she struggled to catch up with him, and ahead, there was no sign of the car slowing even as it turned a bend and went out of sight.

_No, no, no…_

Athrun rounded the bend and couldn't believe his luck. There, the car had come to a halt at the mouth of the road, where the lane was merging with the highway. It had slowed down, looking for a chance to slide into the highway traffic.

He surged on. _Thirty yards. _Breathing hard, and trying to prevent himself from asphyxiating. _Twenty yards. _Almost there. _Ten yards. _The deep-blue sedan began to move, and it slid conveniently between two automobiles and disappeared from view, borne away by the fast-moving traffic. Athrun had just enough of breath to yell a frustrated "no!" as he skidded to a stop at the mouth of the road, staring in vain at the stream of vehicles flashing past him. _What to do? What to do?_

Now, contrary to belief, the best way for a cop to get a free ride wasn't to flash his ID. And besides, AC Ramius had already confiscated his card. So Athrun simply threw himself onto the highway, right in the path of an oncoming vehicle. Which happened to be a pale-green sedan that screeched to a halt inches away from him. Behind him, he heard a frightened scream from Cagalli, but he ignored it, as well as the string of fanciful curses from the driver.

And pointed his gun at the innocent man.

That shut the driver up. As well as the line of honking cars that jammed to a stop behind. Athrun ducked round the hood and opened the driver's door, gun still pointed at the man. "Get out," he barked at his victim, whose hands were up in the air. He towed the driver out by his collar, dumped him onto the road and slid behind the wheel. Beside him, Cagalli got into the passenger's seat, and anticipating the rough ride, hurriedly strapped herself down with the seatbelt. Slamming his foot into the accelerator, Athrun took off with a squeal of the wheels.

Traffic on the highway was congested, but smooth and moving fast. Athrun wove in and out of the lanes like a madman, deaf to the furious blare of horns, his intense emerald eyes scanning the vehicles for any sign of the deep-blue sedan. Fishing for his cell phone with one hand, the other still rock steady on the steering wheel, he hit speed dial and the speaker phone, and got Meyrin on the line after two rings.

"Chief, where are-"

"I need you to trace the location of a vehicle for me. Can you access the satellite imaging?" Athrun interrupted her smoothly.

"But-"

"Now, Meyrin."

The secretary let out a frustrated sigh, which was accompanied by the quick and efficient rattling of the keyboard.

"Thank you," Athrun said, swerving the car to avoid a lorry in front of him. He glanced into the rearview mirror but saw no sign of the deep-blue sedan. _Where the hell were they? _"It's a deep-blue sedan," he continued, "four people in it." He rattled off the plate number and told her which highway they were on so that she could narrow down the search. The highway was like the trunk of a tree, with numerous small roads leading outwards like branches. The targets could take any road and get off the highway, in which case it would be virtually impossible to find them again. There was no way they could scout the entire country in search of the deep-blue sedan with satellite imaging. It would be searching for a needle in a haystack. So they had to nail them right now, on that highway.

_In fact, they could already have taken the nearest exit and left the highway. _Athrun forced that thought aside. "Hurry, Meyrin."

Only the rattle of the keyboard replied him.

Then finally, after a nerve-wrecking five minutes, he heard an exclamation on the other side of the phone. "I got them!"

"Where?"

"They're not far from you. Twenty meters up ahead, but you need to hurry. They seem to be heading for the next exit."

"Okay," Athrun snapped out, flooring the accelerator as he swerved into the next lane to overtake a couple of vehicles. "I got it. Thanks." He fumbled for the 'off' button on his phone.

"Wait, Chief," Meyrin called out.

"Yes?"

There was a pause, as if Meyrin was considering how to say it. "Stay away from the cops on the streets, okay?"

"What?"

"They're out looking for you."

"Because?"

A wince in her voice. "AC Ramius came by. She told us that the Commissioner's issued a warrant for your arrest."

Athrun was silent, and it was Cagalli who exclaimed, "Arrest? On what charges?"

"Breaking-and-entering," said Meyrin sheepishly, "My god, Chief, I don't know what to say. It can't be true. The rest of us don't believe it one bit. You've been set up, haven't you?"

Athrun said nothing but he was aware of Cagalli's stunned gaze on him. His mind was already racing. No one else in the team knew that he had broken into Kira Hibiki's apartment. In fact, it was an 'abandoned' house - no one had been living in it for a while – and all evidence and trace had already been cleaned out. There was nothing important left in there, so there was no reason for someone to report the break-in.

Unless he had left out something.

Or someone wasn't happy that he was snooping around.

He avoided Meyrin's question and instead, asked, "Anything else?"

There was a surprised pause on the other end of the line. "Uh… no, I suppose not, Chief. But-"

"Okay," Athrun said, "I've gotta go, Meyrin. You won't be able to contact me. Don't worry, I'll call when the time's right." He snapped the cell off without waiting for a reply. And he was just in time, for it was then that they saw the deep-blue sedan making its turn into an exit and leaving the highway behind. Athrun bullied his way between a lorry and a van, cutting through the traffic, and made the same turn. He realized that the road they had taken was leading them towards a suburban area on the outskirts of the city. There were fewer vehicles here and the deep-blue sedan had taken advantage of that and accelerated out of sight.

Athrun pushed the pale-green sedan to its limit and raced down the winding lane.

On both sides of the road were green forest and dark woods which eventually thinned out thirty yards from the highway, replaced by rows of rundown apartments and shops. Still, there was no sign of the deep-blue sedan, only an occasional vehicle heading in the opposite direction.

"Do you have your phone with you?" Athrun asked, all the while keeping the accelerator pressed tight to the floor and the car traversing at seventy miles per hour. Cagalli gave him a look of confusion but she dug her cell out of her back jeans pocket and handed it over. Lifting his right hand off the wheel, Athrun snagged the mobile device, wound down his window, and lobbed both her cell and his out of the car.

Cagalli stared wide-eyed as the devices sailed out of the window. "What did you do that for?"

"They can track us through our cells," Athrun said. "We'll get new ones later."

Still a little stunned, Cagalli just settled back into her seat for the wild ride. Forty yards down the road, Athrun jammed the car to an abrupt halt. They were at an intersection, and he slammed both fists into the steering wheel. _Damn, which way? _On the right, there was more forest and vegetation, and a narrow, cracked asphalt road that cut through the trees and bushes. To the left was a row of dinghy-looking bars and pubs, all shut up because business was usually at night. Straight ahead, a row of single-storey houses was interspersed with grocery stores, pawnshops and stores selling all sorts of second-hand goods.

_Which way?_

Athrun peered at the road surface, hoping there would be something, anything, that would give them away. But, no, there was nothing. Nothing at all.

_Which way?_

"I know this place," Cagalli said suddenly, sitting upright in her seat. She glanced over at Athrun. There was a sharp glint in her eyes and excitement in her voice when she said, "Remember the file you asked me to look through earlier this morning? The one about DEX enterprises?"

"Yeah."

"Meyrin had a list of warehouses leased under DEX enterprises. I remember one of them's around here, right in this neighbourhood. Do you think…?" She left the sentence to hang.

"Where is it?" Athrun asked quickly.

"It's," she paused and squinted out of the windshield. Looking right, at the thick forest; then left, at the pubs; then forward, at the neighbourhood. Trying to recall. Then she pointed straight ahead, "Over there."

Athrun shoved the gear into drive, and they tore down the street. For miles, all they saw were the same old shops with their dust-covered windows and their faded signboards, as well as rundown apartments fronted by cracked and scuffed sidewalks. There were people out and about, and a stray phone booth here and there. But still, there was no sign of the deep-blue sedan.

Up ahead, over the low roofs of some grocery stores, a tall iron fence, with its barbed wire top, stood visible.

"Over there," Cagalli repeated, pointing at the fence.

* * *

The van bumped hard onto the sidewalk.

Kira shoved the gearshift into 'park' and scrambled out of it.

The ride he had found was an old, dented delivery van outside a grocery store. "Drop me off here," he had said to Auel, who jammed their deep-blue sedan to an abrupt halt right beside the van. Kira had climbed out of the car and slid directly into the van in one smooth motion, without anyone noticing. The engine was idling, the key still in the ignition. From the rear-view mirror, Kira could see the delivery man busy manhandling a trolley laden with cardboard boxes over the curb and heading for the store.

_Perfect._

Kira's original plan had been to steal a car, but that meant that he had to hotwire it and that took some time. He didn't have much, considering that Athrun Zala was hot on their heels. It had been a narrow escape. He hadn't expected to come face to face with the detective, or the blonde-haired woman. Neither had he anticipated the wracking headache that had assaulted him when he found himself directing the gun at her. It had taken every ounce of his strength to grab the briefcase, turn and run. But even then, just as they were inches away from their escape vehicle, he had spotted Sting flicking off the safety of his gun and aiming for the blonde. He was just in time to shove the gun off target and bundle Sting into the car.

A close shave.

But, thank god, they had lost Athrun Zala and woman back on the highway.

The team had been puzzled when they saw him hopping into the van. Before he could close the door, Stellar had grabbed the handle, preventing it from shutting. "Where're you going?" She wheezed, wide-eyed. The silver briefcase sat nestled safely in her lap.

"Take the serum back to Rau," Kira nodded towards it. "I'll get rid of Lacus Clyne," he lied.

Stellar nodded and released her hold on the door. "Be careful."

"You too. I'll join you as soon as I'm done."

He had waited until the deep-blue sedan sped out of view, then K-turned the stolen van and hurried towards the warehouse. On the way, he had kept a close eye out for any police cruisers, or any sign of Athrun Zala and the blonde woman. But all appeared safe.

He raced the van past the iron fence bordering the industrial site, zipped through small alleyways between the warehouses until he had reached their hideout. There, he jammed the van to a stop, one tire on the sidewalk, and scanned his surroundings. _No sign of the police. _Kira checked his watch. He had given himself ten minutes to get in and out, together with Lacus Clyne, and he had used up four minutes already.

_Time was running out. _

This was his one and only chance to keep her safe, and he wasn't going to lose it.

_Author's note: There! So what do you think? Will Athrun and Cagalli catch up to Kira? Where will Kira bring Lacus? Oh, I'm excited. I'm gonna start work on the next chapter right away. Do review, review, review and let me know what you think!_


	55. 54

**Chapter 54**

The sound of running feet startled Lacus out of her thoughts. The footsteps sounded lithe but frantic, and the commotion echoed around like she was hearing it through a hollow tunnel. She sat up straight and her cramped back protested with a flare of agony, but she ignored the ache. _What was happening? _For a second, shefelt a nugget of hope. _Was it Athrun?_The patter of feet paused outside. The clinking of keys and the rattle of the key in the lock, then the wooden door of her holding cell flew open.

There was no familiar mop of deep-blue hair, no searching emerald green eyes.

It wasn't Athrun.

It was _him – _the man who had kidnapped her, cared for her, fed her, protected her, then pointed a gun at her. The man whom she had thought to be her childhood friend. The heartless murderer who killed for the thrill. The man who had given her hope, only to dash it, then cruelly revive it again.

He stood there in the doorway, chest rising and falling with each wheezing breath. His face was covered by the black cloth and mask, his sharp eyes scanning the room quickly before his gaze fell on her. Lacus found herself burrowing into the corner between two walls, shrinking back instinctively from this incomprehensible man.

A glint, and she noticed with horror that there was a knife in his hand.

"No," she whispered, feeling the fear grip her in a chokehold again. Just like the time he had pointed his gun at her. _But he hadn't shot her then, and he was back now to finish the job._

He started towards her, juggling the blade in his hand to get a better grip. She wriggled backwards, bound hands pressing into her back, her feet scuffing against the dirt-covered floor. _No, no, no… _She squeezed her eyes shut as a hand stretched out towards her. _What was he going to do? Slit her throat? Stab her? Oh god… _

Something ice-cold slid between her ankles and she would have freaked had it not been for the abrupt pull of the ropes as they went taut, then a rustle as they slithered to the ground, freeing her ankles.

Lacus' eyes flew open in astonishment as the man hauled her to her feet, and with a quick plunge of the blade, sliced through the ropes around her bound wrists.

She wet her parched lips with her tongue, and tried to get her voice to work. "What's hap-"

He silenced her by stooping and sweeping the jacket he had lent her off the ground and thrusting it roughly into her arms. Then he began to bundle her towards the exit. "What's happening?" Lacus repeated, but he only answered with a curt nod towards the door as he headed for it. Lacus followed obediently, mind racing.

Then all of a sudden, he paused and turned. There was a kind of thoughtfulness in his stance, as if he was pondering if they had left anything behind. Lacus followed his glance, but saw nothing except dust and muck on the floor. She watched curiously and warily as he trotted back towards the corner she had been crouched in.

And she saw the flash as the fluorescent lights overhead glinted off the blade.

Blood splattered across the wall.

"Oh god," Lacus gasped, a hand flying up to her mouth in horror. She watched dumbly as the blood flowed from his wound. He had sliced the blade across his left forearm, and dark-red blood had streaked through the air and stained the walls along with the sweeping arc of his blade. He let the blood flow for a moment, dripping into a puddle on the filthy ground.

Then, before Lacus could clear her befuddled thoughts, he turned suddenly and grasped her hand, and began to haul her out of the room. "Wait-" She suddenly felt a tinge of fear as he dragged her beyond the doorway. _Where was he taking her? _She began to resist, trying to wrench her hand out of his vice-like grip.

He turned and glanced at her over his shoulder. His eyes, hidden behind the tinted glass of the mask, looked, suddenly and frightfully, familiar. Not the eyes of a murderer, or a madman. There was something else altogether – a kind of vulnerability and fear mixed ironically with reassurance and tenderness.

And she found herself giving in to this stranger, this complicated, impenetrable man.

So when he said, "Trust me", and began to run, Lacus did, and she ran on after him, her warm hand clutched between his icy-cold fingers.

* * *

The tires squealed as Athrun stamped his foot into the brakes, and peered out of the windshield at the row of dinghy warehouses.

"Which one is it?" he asked.

There was no reply as Cagalli studied the solemn-looking brick buildings with a frown. Then she muttered, "I'm not sure, I can't remember what was written in the file."

The said file had been left behind in Athrun's convertible, which by now was riddled with bullet holes and probably on its way to the junkyard or something. The file, left behind on the front passenger seat, had probably been ripped by the onslaught of gunfire into tiny, irretraceable little bits, drifting in the air like ashes. _No way they could get it back. _And getting another copy from Meyrin was impossible, because their cell phones were probably sitting in a ditch somewhere, or crushed on the road under the wheels of another vehicle.

_No way of getting another copy._

No way of telling which of these warehouses was the hideout, or if they were lucky, was where Lacus was being held.

Athrun released the brake and depressed the accelerator, speeding through an alleyway between the brick walls of two warehouses. "We'll just have to do it the long way then," he said, spinning the wheel.

They perused the warehouses closely, one after another. All with their stained brick walls and rusty shutters. Some rose to several stories high, others were single-storied buildings that resembled garages. Each warehouse stood separated from its neighbor by a narrow passageway of gravel drive. There was no one about, no other vehicles in sight. The pale-green sedan they were in zigzagged through the maze of alleyways, fishtailing dangerously whenever Athrun spun the wheel, its rubber tires kicking up the gravel.

After fifteen long minutes, it jolted to an abrupt halt suddenly, in front of a warehouse situated close to the side of the chain-link fence with its barbed wire top. The unexpected jerk threw Cagalli forward, her seatbelt strangling her, until she bounced back into the upholstery. "What in the world?" She murmured, casting a bemused glance at Athrun who flung open his door and spilled out onto the drive.

Hurriedly, she unbuckled her seatbelt and stumbled out of the idling car after him. "What is it? Is this the one?"

Athrun was squatting in front of the warehouse, staring at the gravel on the ground. The gravel was loosely scattered across a dirt ground, and while the gravel in front of the other warehouses looked evenly spread, the gravel here looked all mussed up and patches of the dirt ground were showing through the gravel. A sign that the road here had been largely used, perhaps recently.

He glanced up at the warehouse.

It was a four-storey building and, just like the rest, was built out of reddish-brown bricks, now stained and cracked. A rusted metal shutter covered its main entrance, which was large enough for a truck to pass through, and on its right, there was a narrow wooden door. Athrun could see no other entrances or exits, so he strolled up to the wooden door and examined its hinges.

"What is it?" He heard Cagalli repeat again. He turned around and saw her watching him curiously. "Is this the one?" She said again, stepping up towards him.

"Look at this," Athrun said, working a finger through the folds of the door hinges. His finger came away stained with a black, oily streak. "Grease," he explained, "Someone's been using this door recently."

Which was unusual, because the rest of the industrial area had been abandoned and out of use.

Cagalli stared at him with a mixture of bewilderment, excitement and fear. "Are you sure this is it?"

Athrun shrugged, straightening to his full height. "There's only one way to find out," he said. He tested the door knob first (because there was nothing more stupid than kicking his way in, when the door was unlocked). Unfortunately, the knob didn't give.

_Well, he had his lock-picking tools in his pocket. Of course, there was also another, quicker way of entering._

He put an arm out and motioned Cagalli backwards. When she was a safe distance away, Athrun retreated, then took several running steps and swung his right foot high, striking the lock with his heel. The wood around the knob splintered and the lock mechanism fell to the ground in pieces, shattered.

"Old buildings never have good security systems," he muttered as he gave the door a shove with his shoulder. The door swung inwards to reveal a vast, dimly-lit area seated behind the metal shutter. A loading bay. It was empty except for a couple of moth-eaten cardboard boxes lying on their sides.

Up ahead, on the other end of the loading bay, was an elevator shaft.

There were no stairs, at least not in sight.

_Great, _Athrun thought to himself sourly. _The worst way of infiltrating an enemy's territory was to ride the elevator. _Still, he had no other choice. Sliding his gun from his jacket pocket surreptitiously, he took a tentative step into the warehouse. It was deathly silent.

"Wait in the car," he muttered over his shoulder to Cagalli, "If anyone comes at you, you duck down and hit the car horn. I'll come running. But no matter what you hear, don't come after me."

"No."

"I'm serious."

"Me too. It's time you got it into your head, Athrun Zala." Cagalli's warm breath was in his ear as she peered into the warehouse over his shoulder. Athrun glared back at her, emerald eyes narrowing dangerously. Many people had faltered under his gaze before – criminals and police officers alike – but Cagalli Yamato didn't. She gave him an equally furious glare in return.

"Stay close," Athrun snapped out in a harsh whisper.

They entered the warehouse together, Athrun a step ahead of Cagalli and his gun poised by his side, ready. As they crossed the loading bay, shoes silent on the concrete, Cagalli nudged Athrun gently and pointed at the dust-covered floor. The thick layer of grey dust was broken by a column of overlapping footsteps heading from the wooden door up to the elevator shaft. There were several sets of prints, but it was impossible to distinguish them. Whoever had been using the warehouse had been very, very busy. There were footsteps going in and out of the warehouse. Large strides and small strides. It was an utter confusion of footprints.

But one thing was clear. There had been people in the warehouse recently.

Athrun and Cagalli shared a knowing glance and continued on their way. At the lift, Athrun found two buttons, one 'up' and the other 'down'. He pondered for a moment. _If Lacus was being held hostage in here, she was likely to be held in the basement. _So he depressed the 'down' button with the heel of his hand to avoid leaving fingerprints behind.

The lift was a noisy thing. It moaned and groaned and grinded to a halt with a loud clunk that infuriated Athrun. _The bastards could still be hiding in there, and the commotion caused by the lift could have warned them. _He flicked the safety lever of his gun and held it out at arm's length, nice and easy, pointed at the elevator doors. With his left arm, he propelled Cagalli backwards, behind him, so that if the doors open and gunfire came spilling out, he could turn and shield her.

But when the doors grated open with a terrible groan, there was nothing inside. Nobody. Empty.

All clear.

Athrun bundled Cagalli into it hastily and stabbed the large bulky plastic knob that had a faded "B1" imprinted on it, rubbed away by multiple years of use. The lift doors grinded shut again and with a long moan, began its descent. It seemed ridiculous, but Athrun could have sworn that the lift's descent stretched on for ages. They didn't talk but the tension between them sparked like electricity and the adrenalin pulsed through their blood like a drug.

Finally, the lift grounded and a long moment passed before the heavy steel doors parted. Athrun swept his gun quickly through the space, left, then right, ready to shoot. An empty, gaping corridor yawned back at him. They waited for a minute or so, Athrun's palm pressed against the elevator door to prevent it from shutting, until they were sure that no one would charge at them suddenly. Then Athrun stepped out, followed by Cagalli.

The corridor was lit by flickering fluorescent lights encased in steel cages overhead. On either side of the corridor were stained wooden doors with burnished knobs. Gesturing for Cagalli to check the doors on the left, Athrun himself took the row of doors on the right. He pressed his ear to the first and heard absolute silence on the other end. Gripping the knob with his jacket as a made-shift glove, he flung open the door, and saw only an empty room the size of a closet.

Turning, he met Cagalli's perplexed gaze. She had turned up empty-handed too.

They made their way down the corridor, the silence broken only by the creaking of door hinges, the clicks of shutting doors and the soft tread of their feet. Ten minutes later, they had come to the end of the corridor and still found no sign of either the kidnappers or Lacus. There was one last door that remained un-open at the far end. Standing in front of it, Athrun and Cagalli shared a glance.

A similar question was running through their minds. _Was this it?_

* * *

Kira had the van going as fast as he dared, without arousing the suspicion of onlookers, or worst still, police officers.

He was still bleeding heavily, but he had his left forearm cradled in his lap, so that the blood would soak his trousers rather than drip all over the footwell and the driver's seat.

It had been a last-minute decision – wounding himself and leaving the blood stains behind. There had to be some way he could slow down the police investigation and he figured he could try to set up the scene to look like someone had been murdered in the room. Bloodstains often got detectives all riled up. They brought in crime scene techs and blood splatter analysts and sent blood samples back to the labs. All that took time, sufficient time for him to get Lacus to a safe spot away from prying eyes.

Yet, Kira was aware too that he had made a mistake which could very well come back and haunt him.

He had left his DNA behind.

Kira hadn't been in jail, or hospitals, and he was sure that even if the police had deciphered his DNA, they wouldn't be able to find a match in their database. But it was only a matter of time before the cops figured out that the amount of blood left behind on the floor was too little for that of a murder victim and the search would go on again.

Still, in all his missions, he had never once left behind something that clued in on his identity. Not once, not ever. And he had broken the rule in the case of Lacus. The best way of setting up the scene, would have been to leave Lacus' blood behind. But he couldn't imagine sliding the knife under her skin. He couldn't do it.

So he had left his own blood behind, hoping it would at least throw off some of the cops, or buy them some time. _Perhaps, the shock of seeing blood that could potentially belong to Lacus would throw Athrun Zala into a panic, _he thought to himself as he gunned the engine.

They were on the highway now, cruising smoothly amidst heavy traffic. Kira glanced up into the rearview mirror and spied Lacus behind the cargo barrier separating the front seats from the back of the van. Through the mesh, he could see Lacus curled up, legs tucked close to her chest, her pink hair streaming over her face like a curtain.

_And was it even possible? Lacus Clyne was actually asleep._

Bemused, he turned his attention back to the road ahead and reviewed his options. He didn't have many. His goal was to keep Lacus Clyne alive. Returning her to Athrun Zala wasn't going to do so because she would just go back to her lifestyle, which was so under the spotlight that Rau would have assassins coming after her again in less than a day. He needed to send her somewhere else, someplace away from the spotlight.

_But where?_

He could take her to his apartment, but someone from headquarters could easily access it, someone like his 'housekeeper'. He couldn't think of where else he could send her, or whom he could trust.

_Except, maybe... Was it possible? Could she be trusted?_

Kira didn't seem to have a choice, so he made up his mind and eased the van onto his intended route, hoping he wouldn't get a chance to regret his decision.

_Author's note: There! Another chapter! I live for cliffhangers, but I think everyone's going to kill me the moment they get their hands on me. Well, what do you think? Who can Kira trust? OMG, I'm excited! And of course, as usual, to all my readers, a BIG BIG BIG thank you for everything! I get so excited whenever I read your reviews! So, pretty please, make me excited again – don't forget to review, review, review! Till next time!_


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